Mexico

Where the name comes from

Mexico is named after the Mexica, the Nahuatl-speaking people who founded Tenochtitlan; what their name means is disputed.

First people

People farmed maize here thousands of years ago, and the Olmec, Maya and many other Indigenous peoples built cities long before the Mexica.¹

Known for

Mexico is known for its food, from tacos to mole, and for Day of the Dead, when families honour the dead with altars and marigolds.²

Outside rule

The Mexica built their empire in the 1300s and 1400s, and Spain conquered their capital, Tenochtitlan, in 1521, rebuilding it as the capital of New Spain.^3,4,5

The modern country

Spanish rule ended in 1821. In Mexico City’s main square, the Templo Mayor ruins stand next to the colonial cathedral.³