Jojutla is a municipality in the state of Morelos, Mexico. Its municipal seat is the city of Jojutla de Juárez. The name Jojutla comes from Nahuatl Xoxōuhtlān () and means, Place of abundant blue skies.
Lake Tequesquitengo and part of the Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve are located in the municipality of Jojutla.
Geography
Jojutla is located in the southern area of the state of Morelos. It has a territorial area of approximately 149 km2, covering about 3.1% of the state’s surface area. Its geographical coordinates are 18°31’ to 18°41’ north latitude and 99°9’ to 99°18’ west longitude. It has an elevation ranging from 700 to 1,600 meters above sea level. According to the census, the total population of Jojutla is 57,682 inhabitants.
History
Pre-hispanic history
The area that is Jojutla today was covered by the internal Sea of Plancarte in the Paleozoic Era. The first inhabitants are believed to have arrived 22,000 years ago. Although fragments of obsidian, ceramic, and pottery have been found in the atriums of the chapels of Teocalzingo, Guadalupe, and Tlatenchi, no serious archaeological studies have been undertaken in the area. The Codex Mendoza tells us that people lived in Jojutla from 1425 to 1436 CE, when they were conquered by the troops of Izcóatl and Nezahualcóyotl, and submitted to the Calpixca Acolhua of Tlaquiltenango and the lordship of Cuauhnáhuac. The area was governed by Tlaquiltenango, particularly after the arrival of the religious orders in 1549 and 1604.
On April 14, 1895, at the initiative of a group led by the priest Agapito Mateo Minos Campuzano, Jojutla celebrated its bicentennial.
Revolution & 20th century
There was a bloody battle during the Mexican Revolution until the city was taken and looted by Maderistas under the command of Pablo Torres Burgo, and Gabriel Tepepa. The Revolutionaries sacked the city.
21st century
Andres Eloy Martínez Rojas, a Mexican astronomer (b. Cuernavaca, 1953) discovered a crater on Mars, which he named Jojutla. In 2017 the asteroid (6159) Andréseloy (1991 YH) was named in his honor.
An illegal, secret graveyard used by the government was discovered in Jojutla in March 2017. This was similar to the one found in Tetelcingo two years earlier. Of the 85 bodies found in Jojutla, 54 involved cases that the police had not even bothered to investigate. 30,000 people have "disappeared" in Mexico in the years up to February, 2018.
Jojutla was hit harder than anywhere else in Morelos during the September 19, 2017 earthquake. At least 73 people died and hundreds were injured. 652 homes were destroyed, 1,157 were damaged, and many other buildings, including schools and the Palacio Municipal (city hall), were damaged. More than two years later, in January 2020, residents were still waiting for reconstruction.
Juan Angel Flores Bustamonte of Juntos Haremos Historia (Together we will make history coalition) was elected Presidente Municipal (mayor) in the election of July 1, 2018.
Two parachutists died on March 23, 2019, when their equipment failed and they landed in the Autopista del Sol at Kilometer 132, near Jardines de Mexico. They were employed by a school of parachutes in the area. Festival Vaivén 2019 (art & music festival) was held in Jardines de Mexico on March 30, 2019.
As of May 4, 2020, there were 505 infections and 59 deaths in the state of Morelos and 18 confirmed infections from the COVID-19 pandemic in Jojutla. Schools and many businesses were closed from mid March until June 1.
In 2019 Hortencia Figueroa Peralta from Jojutla, former leader (PRD) of the state legislature, was convicted of misuse of MXN $23.7 million earmarked for employees. She won a temporary injunction against being sent to prison, but in May 2020 that expired and she will soon be sent to the state penitentiary in Atlacholoaya.
The state of Morelos reported 209 cases and 28 deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico, as of April 27, 2020. Schools and many businesses were closed from mid March until June 1. On June 2, Jojutla reported 94 confirmed cases and 17 deaths from the virus; the reopening of the state was pushed back until at least June 13. Jojutla reported 211 cases, 145 recuperations, and 46 deaths from the virus as of August 31. Three hundred sixty-two cases were reported on December 27, 2020. The hospital dedicated to the care of serious COVID-19 cases reached 100% capacity on January 15, 2021.
Notable people
Politics and military
- Fernando Amilpa Rivera (b. in Jojutla in 1898–1952), union leader Confederation of Mexican Workers and federal deputy.
- José Agapito Mateos Minos (b. in Jojutla 1850–1926 in Mexico City), priest and historian, author of “Apuntaciones Históricas de Xoxutla a Tlaquiltenango”.
- Frances Erskine Inglis, 1st Marquise of Calderón de la Barca (1806–1882), Scottish wife Ángel Calderón de la Barca, who was the first plenipotentiary prime minister of Spain in independent Mexico. Ingles arrived in Cuernavaca in 1841 and lived in Atlacumolco. She wrote Life in Mexico in 1843.
Science and research
- Manuel Mazari Puerto (b. 1891–1935), homeopahic doctor and researcher, wrote "Bosquejo histórico del Estado de Morelos".
- Andrés Eloy Martínez Rojas (born 1963), astronomer, lives in Jojutla. In 2006 he discovered and named the Jojutla crater on Mars. He represented the 4th district (Jojutla) in the Congress of the Union (2012–2015) MORENA.
Sports
- Mónica Ocampo Medina (b. 1987 in Jojutla) is a Mexican professional footballer who plays as a forward for Pachuca and the Mexico women's national football team.
- Irving Adrián Pérez Pineda (b. in Jojutla May 16, 1986) is a Mexican triathlete. He competed in the men's event at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
- Valeria Pulido Velasco (b. in Jojutla 1990) is a former professional tennis player.
Others historical figures
- Ricardo Sánchez (d. 1858), introduced rice production to Jojutla in 1840
- Unidad Habitacional Morelos has 25% of the municipal population and is located 7 km from Jojutla de Juarez. It is a residential community. It has a population of 3,688
- Tehuixtla is a ranching and agricultural community with an important tourist sector. 9% of the population live there; 15 km from Jojutla de Juarez. There are 6,500 inhabitants and it is located at an altitude of 879 meters. ISSSTEHUIXTLA, a waterpark run by the social service agency for government workers, is located in the community.
- Tlatenchi is a ranching and agricultural community 5 km from Jojutla de Juarez. There are 5,787 inhabitants and is located at an altitude of 899 meters.
- Tequesquitengo is a small tourist community on the shores of the lake by the same name. It has a permanent population of 3,266 inhabitants and is located 10 km from Jojutla de Juarez.
According to the 2020 census data, the municipality of Jojutla contains 74 localities, with the largest listed below:
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Locality
!Population (2020)
|-
|Jojutla de Juárez
|17,777
|-
|Tehuixtla
|6,500
|-
|Tlatenchi
|5,787
|-
|Pedro Amaro
|5,748
|-
|Higuerón
|5,015
|-
|Tequesquitengo
|3,266
|-
|José María Morelos y Pavón
|3,244
|-
|Jicarero
|1,300
|-
|Los Venados
|1,010
|-
|Other localities
|8,035
|-
|Total
|57,682
|}
Tourist attractions
Lake Tequesquitengo
Known as The Sea of Morelos, Lake Tequesquitengo provides relaxation and fun such as water skiing, skydiving, snorkeling, bungee jumping, or scuba diving. There are hotels around the lake in all price categories.Teques is a popular weekend destination for Mexicans from the capital and the State of Morelos.
The lake has a tragic history. The general belief is that the village of Tequesquitengo was flooded by the Mosso brothers, who—according to Alfonso Toussaint—owned the San José Vista Hermosa hacienda in the mid-19th century, which was erected during the colonial era in the upper part of the valley. Newspapers of the nineteenth century pointed out that in the northern part of the valley there was a small lagoon, which was sustenance for the colonial town of Tequesquitengo, in addition to the tequesquite, a mineral from which the settlement took its name. Until a difference between the peasants and the hacendados caused the latter to divert the flow of surplus water from the irrigation channels of the hacienda to the valley, flooding it and forcing its settlers to settle on the shores of the lake that formed covering the town and its church, San Juan Bautista.
Scholars differ about when the flooding began, suggesting dates between 1820 and 1880, with some blaming the earthquake of 1845.
- La Plata waterpark. 6 swimming pools, 3 wading pools, 5 water slides, athletic fields.
- Las Palmas waterpark. 3 swimming pools, camping area, 6 cabins, athletic fields. There is an artificial lake connected to Rio Amacuzac with a protected area for iguanas and other animals. Located in Tehuixtla.
- Cocos Bugambilia waterpark. Swimming pool, wading pool, dance floor.
- Los Naranjos waterpark. 2 pools, restaurant, campground. Located in Panchimalco.
- Issstehuixtla waterpark. Government run, open to the public. 6 swimming pools, wading pool, diving pool, athletic fields, cabins, campground. There is a 9-meter deep natural pool with sulfur water. Located in Tehuixtla.
Historical and cultural sites
The Ex-hacienda La Perseverancia (The Perseverance) was founded in 1870 and has a rice mill.
Jardines de Mexico (Garden of Mexico), located in Tehuixla, is the largest ornamental garden in the world. There are 65 million flowers and 22,000 trees in seven gardens over an area of . An annual hot-air balloon fest is offered there. Festival Vaivén 2019 (art & music festival) was celebrated in Jardines de Mexico, March 30, 2019.
The town of Chisco is not far from Lake Tequesquitengo. Visitors can enjoy Class 3 river rafting and tubing on the Amacuzac River; mountain biking ( of tracks); ultralight aviation; camping; and more. (Temporarily closed).
Sports, fiestas, dances, traditions
Festivals
January
- New Year's Fair, January 1–10, Jojutla de Juárez. This is the most important festival in the community. It commemorates the discovery of a black cruxifix in 1772 that somehow disappeared several times until miraculously reappearing at the chapel of Guadalupe in Xoxotla. The Señor de Tula (Lord of Tula) was honored from September 14, 1724, until 1848; since that time the holiday has been celebrated on January 1.
February
- Flag Day, February 24–28, Jicarero.
March
- Cultural Week, March 21–29, Jojutla.
Los Pastores is a traditional form of devotional theater performed on Christmas Eve after Las Posadas. The performance involves music and religious readings about the journey of the shepherds and other biblical themes. It was inspired by Spanish colonial theater and Indigenous cultural practices.
The Chinelos are traditional masked dancers from the state of Morelos. The dance is typically seen during Carnival and other festivals. The tradition originated from Indigenous and Spanish colonial Catholic Carnival traditions. The dance often mocks European elites from the colonial period through its costumes and mannerisms.
Sports
The municipality of Jojutla has several sports facilities that host sporting events and recreational activities. The primary facility used is the Unidad Deportiva la Perseverancia. This facility has areas created for recreational and cultural activities. Since 1992, it has offered a variety of recreational activities such as soccer, American football, swimming, squash, running and walking tracks, aerobics, zumba, and yoga. Some cultural events include contemporary, ballroom, and regional dancing.
Cuisine
Red, white, and green pozole; corn tamales of all kinds: fish, nopales (cactus leaves) with onions, huazmole (a goat stew made with jumbay; different rice plates; cecina; barbecue; and tacos dorados (tacos made with deep-fried torillas). Among the species of animals are jaguars, short-horned Baronia butterfly, beaded lizard, military macaw, roufus-backed robin, Balsas screech owl, Pileated flycatcher, mountain lion, ocelot, margay, bobcat, and jaguarundi.
Federal: 4th Electoral District of Morelos, municipal seat in Jojutla
Municipal Presidents of Jojutla
- Adalberto Sámano – 1961-1964
- Ángel Ocampo Ocampo – 1964-1967
- Adalberto Sámano – 1967-1970
- Rubén Román Sánchez – 1970-1973
- Marcos Rodríguez Duarte – 1973-1976
- Raúl Meléndez Betancourt – 1976-1979
- Lucino Espín Herrera – 1979-1982
- Lino Ocampo Olivares – 1982-1985
- Ismael Rivera Velázquez – 1985-1988
- Alberto Rueda Retiguín – 1988-1991
- Gregorio Rosas García – 1991-1994
- Roberto Huicochea Rodríguez – 1994-1997
- Antonio Pastrana Quevedo – 1997-2000
- Atanasio Pérez Villalobos – 2000-2003
- Alfredo Zepeda Huicochea – 2003
- Nelson Torres Mondragón – 2003-2006
- Alberto Cabrera Díaz – 2006-2009
- Enrique Retiguin Morales – 2009-2012
- Hortencia Figueroa Peralta – 2012-2015
- Alfonso de Jesús Sotelo Martínez - 2015-2018
- Lic. Juan Ángel Flores Bustamante 2018 - 2021
- Lic. Juan Ángel Flores Bustamante 2022 - 2024 (Reelected)
- Alan Francisco Martínez García - Present - 2027
See also
- List of people from Morelos
- Jorge Carrillo Olea
References
External links
- Crater Jojutla Astronomy