Santa Catarina Juquila is a town in the State of Oaxaca

Oaxaca

Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, and is the seat of the municipality also called Santa Catarina Juquila.
It is part of the Juquila District

Juquila District, Oaxaca

Juquila District is located in the center of the Costa Region of the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, on the Pacific coast.It has an area of 5,055 km2.As of 2005 it had a total population of 134,365 of whom 33,106 spoke an indigenous language....

 in the center of the Costa Region

Costa Region, Oaxaca

The Costa Region or Costa Chica lies on the Pacific coast of the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, below the more mountainous Sierra Sur inland from the coast...

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The name "Juquila" comes from "Xuhquililla", which means "Place of blue milkweed".

Environment

The total area of the municipality is 811.42 km² in rugged terrain in the foothills of the Sierra Madre del Sur

Sierra Madre del Sur

The Sierra Madre del Sur is a mountain range in southern Mexico, extending from southern Michoacán east through Guerrero, to the Istmo de Tehuantepec in eastern Oaxaca.-Geography:...

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The climate is temperate humid, with maximum temperatures of 20°C, minimum 12°C and average 16°C.. Annual rainfall is 854 mm, higher from May to September and lower from October to April.
Trees include pine, oak, mahogany, cedar, oak, coral, topehuaje, blackwood, ebony, jacaranda and ash.
Fruit trees include orange, lemon, mamey, banana, pomegranate and guava.
Wild fauna are deer, badgers, iguana and armadillo.

Town

The town has a population of 5,579 inhabitants and is at an altitude of 1,462 meters above sea level. It is located north of Puerto Escondido on Federal Highway 131.

The town is known for the Santuario (Sanctuary) de Juquila which houses a 30 cm statue of the Virgin Mary, which has been venerated since the 16th century. In 1633, it survived, completely intact, a fire that destroyed the village in which it was originally located. At the beginning of the 18th century, it was moved to its current location where the sanctuary was built for it. Thousands visit this Virgin from across the state of Oaxaca, other parts of Mexico and abroad .

People

In 2005 the municipality had 2,715 households with a total of 14,380 inhabitants of whom 4,168 people who speak an indigenous language.
Juquila is one of the centers of the Chatino

Chatino

Chatino is the Spanish name of an indigenous people of southern central Mexico, and also of their language, the Chatino language. Chatino communities are located in the southeastern region of the state of Oaxaca. Speakers of Chatino are numbered around 23,000 , but ethnic Chatinos may number many...

 people, related to the Zapotec but with a distinct language.
The Union of Indigenous Communities of the Isthmus Region

Union of Indigenous Communities of the Isthmus Region

The Union of Indigenous Communities of the Isthmus Region , is a farmer's cooperative in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. It was established in 1982 to assist in production, marketing and distribution of locally produced coffee and other products....

, a cooperative founded in 1982, assists in production and distribution of the local products, notably coffee, under a fair trade

Fair trade

Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries make better trading conditions and promote sustainability. The movement advocates the payment of a higher price to producers as well as higher social and environmental standards...

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Communities

As municipal seat, Santa Catarina Juquila has governing jurisdiction over the following communities:

• Ampliación Barrio Grande y la Asunción
• Arroyo Triste
• Arroyo Trompo,
• Cañada de Otate,
• Cerro Iglesia,
• Cinco Negritos,
• Cruz de Palo,
• El Borrego,
• El Cacao,
• El Camalote,
• El Cangrejo,
• El Carrizo,
• El Cereso,
• El Ciruelo,
• El Coquito,
• El Corozal Grande,
• El Corozalito,
• El Destino,
• El Mamey,
• El Mosquito,
• El Nanche,
• El Obispo,
• El Ocote Solo,
• El Otate,
• El Pedimento,
• El Platanar,
• El Portillo,
• El Portillo Amialtepec,
• El Salar,
• Finca Manuel León,
• Junta de los Ríos,
• La Asunción,
• La Cieneguilla,
• La Esmeralda,
• La Esperanza,
• La Guadalupe,
• La Jícara,
• La Juquilita,
• La Matraca (Llano de los Ocotes),
• La Sanguijuela,
• La Soledad,
• La Soledad el Mapache,
• La Unión,
• La Yerba Buena,
• Las Trancas,
• Llano Grande,
• Loma Bonita,
• Los Tres Reyes las Canoas,
• Mata Sandía
• Monte Obscuro,
• Paso Hondo,
• Pie del Cerro,
• Plan del Ciruelo,
• Pueblo Viejo,
• Río Bajo (La Reforma),
• San Felipe de Jesús,
• San Francisco Ixpantepec,
• San José Ixtápam,
• San José Vista Hermosa (Aguacatal Grande),
• San Lucas,
• San Marcos Zacatepec,
• Santa María Amialtepec,
• Santa María Yolotepec,
• Santiago Miramar,
• Vista al Mar (Agua Podrida)