Totontepec Villa de Morelos is a small village and municipality

Municipalities of Mexico

Municipalities are the second-level administrative division in Mexico . There are 2,438 municipalities in Mexico, making the average municipality population 45,616...

, in the Sierra Mixe

Sierra Mixe

The Sierra Mixe or Mixes District is a district in the east of the Sierra Norte Region of the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It comprises 17 municipalities and covers 4,930 km2 at an average elevation of 1,200 meters above sea level....

 district of the Mexican 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...

. It is located some 1840 metres above sea level and some 326 km from the state capital, Oaxaca de Juárez. In spite of the Mixe influence, the toponym is Nahuatl

Nahuatl

Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...

 in origin, meaning "hot hill".

The town

The locals, called Totontepecanos, speak Mexican Spanish

Mexican Spanish

Mexican Spanish is a version of the Spanish language, as spoken in Mexico and in various places of Canada and the United States of America, where there are communities of Mexican origin....

 and the local dialect of the Mixe language

Mixe languages

The Mixe languages are languages of the Mixean branch of the Mixe–Zoquean language family indigenous to southern Mexico. According to a 1995 classification, there are seven of them...

. Each dialect of Mixe is different depending on the village in which it is spoken. According to the 2005 census, the town had a population of 5,626 people.

The town's most notable feature is a rock that can be seen from nearly every location. They call it "La Mitra" (or mitre

Mitre

The mitre , also spelled miter, is a type of headwear now known as the traditional, ceremonial head-dress of bishops and certain abbots in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as in the Anglican Communion, some Lutheran churches, and also bishops and certain other clergy in the Eastern Orthodox...

, in English). It is located at the top of the mountain on which Totontepec is built. The locals will scale this mountain to light prayer candles and get a great view of their town.

The municipality

According to the 2005 Census, the municipality had a total population of 4,780, many of whom were proficient of an indigenous tongue. The municipality covers 318.95 km².

As municipal seat, Totontepec has governing jurisdiction over the following communities:

Chinantequilla

San José Chinantequilla (Oaxaca)

San Jose Chinantequilla is a mexican community by the state of Oaxaca, in the municipality of Totontepec Villa de Morelos located in the mixe district, is located in the sierra norte...

, El Duraznal, Patio Grande, Rancho Alejandro Villegas, San Francisco Jayacaxtepec, San Marcos Moctum, San Miguel Metepec, Santa María Huitepec, Santa María Ocotepec, Santa María Tiltepec, Santiago Amatepec, Santiago Jareta, Santiago Tepitongo, and Tierra Caliente (Rancho Uno y Rancho Dos)

External links

• Totontepec Villa de Morelos (Enciclopedia de los Municipios)
• Totontepec Villa de Morelos (oaxaca.gob.mx)