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Toluca

Coordinates: 19°17′33″N 99°39′25″W / 19.29250°N 99.65694°W / 19.29250; -99.65694
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Toluca
Tollohcan
Toluca de Lerdo
Official seal of Toluca
Nickname: 
Toluca "The beautiful one"
Toluca is located in Mexico
Toluca
Toluca
Coordinates: 19°17′33″N 99°39′25″W / 19.29250°N 99.65694°W / 19.29250; -99.65694
CountryMexico
StateMexico
MunicipalityToluca
FoundedMay 19, 1522
Government
 • Municipal PresidentMartha Hilda González Calderón (2012-2015)
Elevation
2,667 m (8,750 ft)
Population
 (2010)
 • City819,561[1]
 • Metro
1,610,786
 • Demonym
Toluqueño(a)
Time zoneUTC−6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Postal code
50000-
Area code722
Websitewww.toluca.gob.mx

Toluca city or Toluca de Lerdo, is the state capital of both the State of Mexico and its surrounding municipality.

Etymology

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Glyph of Tollohcan.

The name comes from Nahuatl and means "place of god Tolloh", named Tollohcan, although both the town and municipality are commonly referred to as simply "Toluca". According to the studies of Cecilio Robelo, Toluca means 'where the god Tolo is' or 'hill of the god Tolo' or 'place of the god Tolo'. Its grammatical roots are toloqui, from toloa, 'to bow or lower the head'.

In 1861 by decree of the local legislature, the municipality took the official name of Toluca de Lerdo, in memory of the politician Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada who was still alive at that time.

Nzehñi in Otomi language, Imbomáani in Matlatzinca language, Zúmi in Mazahua language and Tsindijets in Tlahuica language.

The first human settlements on these lands date back to 1,200 BC, according to information provided by the Museum of Anthropology and History, located in the Ex-Hacienda La Pila, in San Buenaventura.

Geography

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The Lerma River flows from Lake Almoloya del Río through the center of the municipality towards the west, flowing into Lake Chapala. From this point westward the river takes the name of Río Grande de Santiago in Jalisco. The river is about 1,180 km (730 mi) long; about 60% of it is known as Lerma River and 40% as Santiago River.[2]

The Nevado de Toluca or Xinantécatl is 30 km (19 mi) southwest of the city. The god Tolo was supposed to reside in the volcano's crater. Its original indigenous name was Chiknauhtekatl which means "Nine Mountains" but later was named Xinantecatl which means "naked man", because the silhouette of its crater resembles a sleeping man, before the Spaniards named it Nevado, meaning "snow-covered". It is a place of increasing sporting activity, such as mountain biking, climbing, and high altitude running. Zopilocalco hill is in Toluca City, near of Martíres Main Plaza.

The climate in Toluca is prone to extended dry periods particularly in the winter. Almost nine-tenths of the annual rainfall occurs between June and September. Just outside the heavily industrialized city, the municipality has forests with oak, pine, fir, cedar, cypress and other flora, characteristic of the temperate zone of central Mexico.

Climate data for Toluca (1991–2020 normals, extremes since 1951)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 27.0
(80.6)
30.0
(86.0)
32.5
(90.5)
32.0
(89.6)
33.6
(92.5)
31.0
(87.8)
27.0
(80.6)
26.5
(79.7)
27.5
(81.5)
28.5
(83.3)
26.8
(80.2)
31.0
(87.8)
33.6
(92.5)
Mean maximum °C (°F) 24.6
(76.3)
26.4
(79.5)
28.2
(82.8)
28.7
(83.7)
28.8
(83.8)
27.1
(80.8)
24.7
(76.5)
24.8
(76.6)
24.7
(76.5)
25.1
(77.2)
24.7
(76.5)
24.4
(75.9)
29.7
(85.5)
Average high °C (°F) 20.3
(68.5)
22.3
(72.1)
23.9
(75.0)
25.0
(77.0)
24.8
(76.6)
22.9
(73.2)
21.7
(71.1)
21.8
(71.2)
21.5
(70.7)
21.7
(71.1)
21.2
(70.2)
20.3
(68.5)
22.3
(72.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 10.0
(50.0)
11.5
(52.7)
13.1
(55.6)
14.8
(58.6)
15.7
(60.3)
15.6
(60.1)
15.3
(59.5)
15.0
(59.0)
14.4
(57.9)
13.7
(56.7)
11.6
(52.9)
10.2
(50.4)
13.4
(56.1)
Average low °C (°F) −0.4
(31.3)
0.7
(33.3)
2.3
(36.1)
4.5
(40.1)
6.5
(43.7)
8.2
(46.8)
8.8
(47.8)
8.2
(46.8)
8.3
(46.9)
5.6
(42.1)
2.0
(35.6)
0.1
(32.2)
4.6
(40.2)
Mean minimum °C (°F) −4.5
(23.9)
−2.9
(26.8)
−1.8
(28.8)
−1.3
(29.7)
2.9
(37.2)
4.4
(39.9)
4.9
(40.8)
4.6
(40.3)
3.7
(38.7)
1.1
(34.0)
−2.7
(27.1)
−4.0
(24.8)
−5.2
(22.6)
Record low °C (°F) −8.3
(17.1)
−7.0
(19.4)
−7.3
(18.9)
−1.8
(28.8)
0.5
(32.9)
3.0
(37.4)
0.8
(33.4)
2.4
(36.3)
−0.9
(30.4)
−3.1
(26.4)
−7.0
(19.4)
−9.7
(14.5)
−9.7
(14.5)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 10.9
(0.43)
14.6
(0.57)
19.9
(0.78)
33.8
(1.33)
87.2
(3.43)
172.8
(6.80)
198.5
(7.81)
185.9
(7.32)
163.5
(6.44)
65.0
(2.56)
20.6
(0.81)
8.0
(0.31)
980.7
(38.59)
Average rainy days (≥ 0.1 mm) 2.8 3.0 4.6 7.5 15.4 20.9 24.2 23.3 20.4 12.0 5.1 2.1 141.3
Average relative humidity (%) 64 61 58 56 60 68 71 72 72 70 67 65 65
Mean monthly sunshine hours 244 246 275 258 235 169 183 187 163 207 215 246 2,628
Source 1: Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (humidity 1951–2010 & extremes)[3]
Source 2: NOAA[4] Infoclimat (mean max/min 2000–2020, extremes recorded since 2000)[5]

Twin towns

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Toluca is twin town with:[6]

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References

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  1. (in Spanish) "Perspectiva estadistica Mexico" (PDF). Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  2. García de León, Porfirio; Fernádo González de la Vara; Ricardo Jaramillo Luque (1998). Historia General del Estado de México Volumen 1 Geografía y Arqueología (in Spanish). Toluca México: Corporación Editorial Mac S.A. de C.V. p. 39. ISBN 970-669-001-8.
  3. "Normales climatológicas 1951–2010" (in Spanish). Servicio Meteorológico Nacional. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  4. "Climate Normals 1991–2020, Toluca". NOAA. Archived from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  5. "Climatologie de l'année à Toluca, Mex" (in French). Infoclimat. Archived from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  6. "Atractivos Turísticos" (PDF) (in Spanish). Toluca. 2022. pp. 74–75. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 2023-11-17.

Other websites

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Media related to Toluca de Lerdo at Wikimedia Commons