Tlalnepantla, Morelos

The name Tlalnepantla means "In the middle of the lands" in Nahuatl,[6] which may be interpreted as "In the middle of the mountains." According to Reyes and Robelo this town was originally called Tlalnepantla Kuauhtenko; this second place name means "On the shore of the eagles;" its etymology from Kuauh-tli, "eagle"; ten-tli, "shore or lip", and ko, adverb of "place"; however, in the hieroglyph the sign of the tree is clearly seen between two parts of the earth. It is supposed to be related to the terrestrial meridian, nearly the same as the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral.[1]

Ruins of settlements of Nahuas and Nahuatl-speaking Tlahuicas have been found since before the founding of Tlalnepantla.[6]

By the 1590s a town called Teocaltitla was established northwest about seven kilometers from the present municipal seat. Ruins of its church, including plaster, can still be seen. The ruins of the town of San Bartolomé ("Cohamilpa") are located about four kilometers west of Tlalnepantla. Ruins of the San Nicolás Tolentino neighborhood ("Teopancasholtitla"), founded in 1600, are located six kilometers from Tlalnepantla. San Felipe, also founded in the 1600s, is located five kilometers away.[6]

Tlalnepantla-Cuahutenco was formed by Fray Toribio and Fray Juan de Zumárraga between 1680 and 1690 by grouping the people into five "barrios"—San Pedro, San Felipe, San Nicolás, San Bartolo, Santiagoof—with about 800 people each.[6] It took the simpler name Tlalnepantla in 1869.[6]

Construction of the convent and the parish of the Purification was begun by the Augustinians in the 16th century and completed in 1791.[6] The former monastery of the Precious Blood of Christ also dates from the same time. The church was burned during the Mexican War of Independence and was renovated in 1933.[1]

Tlalnepantla became a municipal seat in the State of Mexico on October 11, 1848.[1] It became part of Morelos on April 17, 1869.[12]

A telephone line was established between 1880 and 1910 near Tenecuilco where President Porfirio Díaz had a hunting lodge. On one occasion, the president got lost, only to be saved by a local resident named Bonifacio Rodríguez. In gratitude for saving his life, the president gave Rodríguez his telephone number, which was quite useful later when Rodríguez was arrested in a drunken brawl. Ciriaco Espíndola, also from Tenecuilco, became Díaz's secretary from 1880-1900 and his brother Dolores Espíndola worked as administrator of the Mexican Railway.

The ex-hacienda of Cuatepec or Coatepec was built during colonial times.[1] During the Mexican Revolution the hacienda was looted and burned, then abandoned by its owner. The peasants divided the land and the community adopted the name of General Felipe Neri, a Zapatista who was killed by rival general Antonio Barona Rojas. The town's foundation is celebrated on February 8.[6]

The first carnaval in Tlalnepantla was organized by Pablo Lima in 1905; carnaval was suspended during the Revolution and started again in 1929.[6]

El Vigía, also called San Nicolás del Monte, was formed by uniting the barrios of San Miguel, San Francisco, San Pedro, and San Lucas.[6] San Nicolás del Monte was isolated until Mexican Federal Highway 113 was built in 1973. The town changed its name to El Vigía in 1973 because during the Revolution it was used to warn people when enemy armies were approaching.[6] El Pedregal was founded by Teofilo Pacheco in 1975.[6]

At least 340 homes were damaged during the 2017 Puebla earthquake, but no deaths or injuries were reported in the municipality.[13]

Rigoberto Espindola Gonzalez of the Panal was elected Presidente Municipal on July 1, 2018.[2]

The state of Morelos reported 209 cases and 28 deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico as of April 27, 2020; one case was reported in Tlatnapantla. Schools and many businesses were closed from mid March until June 1.[14] On July 2, Tlalnepantla reported 33 infections and four deaths from the virus; the reopening of the state was pushed back until at least June 13.[15] Tlalnepantla reported 19 cases, 18 recuperations, and two deaths from the virus as of August 31.[16] Twenty/one cases were reported on December 27, 2020.[17]

• Fray Toribio and Fray Juan de Zumárraga – Founders of Tlalnepantla, about 1690
• Teofilo Pacheco – Founder of El Pedregal in 1975
• Ciriaco Espíndola – Secretary to President Porfirio Díaz, 1880-1900
• Pablo Lima – Organized the first carnaval, 1905
• Inés Chávez – Built the Deposito de Cuatizec, 1906-1908
• Benjamín Medina – Built 500 meters of highway from Tlalnepantla to Tierra Grande, 1931-1933

Municipal presidents (1958–present)

The main economic activity of this is agriculture, of which 89% is the cultivation of prickly pears or nopales. Both the fruit and the leaves are sold in Mexico City, Monterrey, Tijuana, and even the United States. Corn and tomatoes, which were once staple crops, now take second place to this cactus.[21] Fruit trees were introduced by Spanish missionaries, and some fruit, particularly avocados, peaches, and pears are still gown today.[6] Livestock are also raised.[19]

There is controlled logging of the forests and a significant amount of wood is exploited. There are some fields for growing Christmas trees.

• List of people from Morelos, Mexico

• http://www.e-morelos.gob.mx/e-gobierno/DirMunicipios/tlalnepantla.htm
• http://e-municipios.e-morelos.gob.mx/tlalnepantla.htm