Guanajuato (city)
Guanajuato (Spanish pronunciation: [gwanaˈxwato], Otomi: Ndänuë) is a municipality in central Mexico and the capital of the state of the same name. It is part of the macroregion of the Bajío. It is located in a narrow valley, which makes its streets narrow and winding. Most are alleys that cars cannot pass through, and some are long sets of stairs up the mountainsides. Many of the city's thoroughfares are partially or fully underground. The historic center has numerous small plazas and colonial-era mansions, churches, and civil constructions built using pink or green sandstone. The city historic center and the adjacent mines were proclaimed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988.
Guanajuato | |
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City and municipality | |
Guanajuato skyline University of Guanajuato Juárez Theater Church of the Valenciana silver mine Hidalgo market | |
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Coat of arms | |
Guanajuato Location in Guanajuato Guanajuato Guanajuato (Mexico) | |
| Coordinates: 21°01′04″N 101°15′24″W | |
| Country | Mexico |
| State | Guanajuato |
| Founded | 1548 |
| Founded as | Real de Minas de Guanajuato |
| Founded by | Antonio de Mendoza |
| Government | |
| • Municipal President | Alejandro Navarro Saldaña |
| Area | |
| • Municipality | 1,014 km2 (392 sq mi) |
| • City | 12.25 km2 (4.73 sq mi) |
| Elevation (of seat) | 2,045 m (6,709 ft) |
| Population (2020 census) | |
| • Municipality | 194,500 |
| • Density | 190/km2 (500/sq mi) |
| • City | 70,068 |
| • City density | 5,700/km2 (15,000/sq mi) |
| Demonym | (in Spanish) Guanajuatense |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Postal code (of seat) | 36000 |
| Area code | +52 473 |
| Website | (in Spanish) |
UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
| Official name | Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | I, II, IV, VI |
| Designated | 1988 (12th session) |
| Reference no. | 482 |
| Region | Latin America and the Caribbean |
The growth of Guanajuato resulted from the abundantly available minerals in the mountains surrounding it. Its mines were among the most important during the European colonization of America (along with Zacatecas also in Mexico, Potosí in Bolivia and Ouro Preto in Brazil). One of the mines, La Valenciana, accounted for two-thirds of the world's silver production at the height of its production.
The city is home to the Mummy Museum, which contains naturally mummified bodies that were found in the municipal cemetery between the mid 19th and 20th centuries. It is also home to the Festival Internacional Cervantino, which invites artists and performers from all over the world as well as Mexico. Guanajuato was the site of the first battle of the Mexican War of Independence between newly assimilated Mexican insurgent warriors and royalist troops at the Alhóndiga de Granaditas.