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Nuevo León

geography Maturity 11-13 Next article →

Nuevo León is a state located in northeastern Mexico.

Relieve de Nuevo León
Relieve de Nuevo León

It sits next to the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosi. It also shares a very narrow border with Texas in the United States. The state covers 64,156 square kilometers of land.

Cerro de la Silla (cropped)
Cerro de la Silla (cropped)

This area is the thirteenth-largest state in Mexico by size. Most of the 5.78 million people live in the Monterrey metropolitan area.

Monterrey Rascacielos
Monterrey Rascacielos

This big city area holds about 5.3 million people. It is the second-largest metropolitan area in the whole country.

Before explorers arrived, many different groups lived on this land. These people were nomads, which means they moved around to find food.

Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton
Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton

Historians call these groups the chichimecas. There were about 250 different nomadic groups living here. They lived in small bands and stayed in temporary settlements called rancherías. These homes were simple huts made of branches and thatched roofs. Some groups lived near rivers like the Salinas River to fish. Others lived near the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains for a better climate.

Spanish explorers began changing the region in the 1500s. Luis Carvajal y de la Cueva led an expedition in 1580. He named the area the New Kingdom of León. He chose this name because the mountains reminded him of the Kingdom of León in Spain.

Provincias Internas de Oriente
Provincias Internas de Oriente

Later, the name was simply shortened to Nuevo León. Permanent settlements were hard to start at first. Diego de Montemayor helped settle the area in 1596. He founded the city of Monterrey, which became the capital. This city had several different founding attempts over many years.

History brought many changes to the state through wars and new laws. Nuevo León became a state of Mexico in 1824. This happened after Mexico won its war for independence. The state even tried to join a group called the Republic of the Rio Grande in 1840.

Frayservando
Frayservando

Later, the Mexican-American War brought fighting to the area. In September 1846, U.S. forces fought a three-day battle to take Monterrey.

Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton
Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton

This battle was led by General Zachary Taylor. The fighting caused many injuries to the people on both sides.

Today, Nuevo León is a very important place for business. It is a major manufacturing hub for the country. This means many large companies make things there. The state has one of the largest economies in Mexico. This growth started getting faster after the Mexican Revolution.

Condominio Acero - panoramio
Condominio Acero - panoramio

Many people live in tall buildings in the big cities. The state connects its long history to its busy modern life. It remains a strong and central part of Mexico.

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🖼️ Images & Media (40)
File:PAN Party (Mexico).svg
PAN Party (Mexico).svg
File:PRI logo (Mexico).svg
PRI logo (Mexico).svg
File:Morena logo (alt).svg
Morena logo (alt).svg
File:PT_Party_(Mexico).svg
PT_Party_(Mexico).svg
File:PVE_logo_(Mexico).svg
PVE_logo_(Mexico).svg
File:Provincias Internas de Oriente.jpg
Provincias Internas de Oriente.jpg
File:Frayservando.jpg
Frayservando.jpg
File:Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton.jpg
Monterrey 1847 litografía de F. Swinton.jpg
File:Santiago Vidaurri stand.jpg
Santiago Vidaurri stand.jpg
File:Cerveceria Moctezuma. Orizoba (sic). Mexico (21605591919).jpg
Cerveceria Moctezuma. Orizoba (sic)....
File:Condominio Acero - panoramio.jpg
Condominio Acero - panoramio.jpg
File:Monterrey Rascacielos.jpg
Monterrey Rascacielos.jpg

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