Jump to content

Portal:Mexico

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Temple of Warriors at Chichen Itza, Mexico
The Temple of Warriors at Chichen Itza, Mexico

¡Bienvenido! Welcome to the Mexico portal

Mexico
Location of Mexico
LocationSouthern portion of North America

Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundaries with the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the southeast, and the Gulf of Mexico to the east. Mexico covers 1,972,550 km2 (761,610 sq mi), and is the thirteenth-largest country in the world by land area. With a population exceeding 130 million, Mexico is the tenth-most populous country in the world and is home to the largest number of native Spanish speakers. Mexico City is the capital and largest city, which ranks among the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. It is also the northwesternmost country in Latin America.


Human presence in Mexico dates back to at least 8,000 BC. Mesoamerica, considered a cradle of civilization, was home to numerous advanced societies, including the Olmecs, Maya, Zapotecs, Teotihuacan civilization, and Purépecha. Spanish colonization defeated the dominant Aztec Empire, establishing the colony of New Spain with its capital at Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City). Mexico became a major center of the transatlantic economy, fueled by silver mining and the forced labor of Indigenous peoples and enslaved Africans. The 1810–1821 Mexican War of Independence ended Spanish rule and led to the creation of the First Mexican Empire, which quickly collapsed into the short-lived First Mexican Republic. In 1848, Mexico lost nearly half its territory to the Mexican–American War. Liberal reforms set in the Constitution of 1857 led to civil war and French intervention, culminating in the establishment of the Second Mexican Empire under Emperor Maximilian I, who was overthrown by Republican forces led by Benito Juárez. The late 19th century saw the long dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz, whose modernization policies came at the cost of severe social inequality. The 1910–1920 Mexican Revolution led to the overthrow of Díaz and the adoption of the 1917 Constitution. Mexico experienced rapid industrialization and economic growth in the 1940s–1970s, amidst electoral fraud, political repression, and economic crises. Unrest included the Tlatelolco massacre of 1968 and the Zapatista uprising in 1994. The late 20th century saw a shift towards neoliberalism, marked by the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994. (Full article...)

This is a Featured article, which represents some of the best content on English Wikipedia.

The Grass Fight was a small battle during the Texas Revolution, fought between the Mexican Army and the Texian Army. The battle took place on November 26, 1835, just south of San Antonio de Béxar in the Mexican region of Texas. The Texas Revolution had officially begun on October 2 and by the end of the month the Texians had initiated a siege of Béxar, home of the largest Mexican garrison in the province. Bored with the inactivity, many of the Texian soldiers returned home; a smaller number of adventurers from the United States arrived to replace them. After the Texian Army rejected commander-in-chief Stephen F. Austin's call to launch an assault on Béxar on November 22, Austin resigned from the army. The men elected Edward Burleson their new commander-in-chief.

On November 26, Texian scout Deaf Smith brought news of a Mexican pack train, accompanied by 50–100 soldiers, that was on its way to Bexar. The Texian camp was convinced that the pack train carried silver to pay the Mexican garrison and purchase supplies. Burleson ordered Colonel James Bowie to take 45–50 cavalry and intercept the train. An additional 100 infantry followed. On seeing the battle commence, Mexican General Martín Perfecto de Cos sent reinforcements from Bexar. The Texans repulsed several attacks by Mexican soldiers, who finally retreated to Bexar. When the Texians examined the abandoned pack train they discovered that, instead of silver, the mules carried freshly cut grass to feed the Mexican Army horses. Four Texians were injured, and historian Alwyn Barr states that three Mexican soldiers were killed, although Bowie and Burleson initially claimed the number was much higher. (Full article...)

Selected article - show another

The Mexican Dirty War (Spanish: Guerra sucia) was the Mexican theater of the Cold War, an internal conflict from the 1960s to the 1980s between the Mexican Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI)-ruled government under the presidencies of Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Luis Echeverría, and José López Portillo, which were backed by the U.S. government, and left-wing student and guerrilla groups. During the war, government forces carried out disappearances (estimated at 1,200), systematic torture, and "probable extrajudicial executions".

In the 1960s and 1970s, Mexico was persuaded to be part of both Operation Intercept and Operation Condor, developed between 1975 and 1978, with the pretext to fight against the cultivation of opium and marijuana in the "Golden Triangle", particularly in Sinaloa. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Selected picture

Mexican actress and singer Sandra Itzel
image credit: PiliAriz

Good article - show another

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

Todos Los Romances (All the Romances) is a box set compilation album by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. Released on 11 August 1998 by WEA Latina, the record features the three previously released Romance-themed albums in which Miguel covered classic boleros in each of them: Romance (1991), Segundo Romance (1994), and Romances (1997). An editor for AllMusic rated the album four of five stars. Commercially, Todos Los Romances peaked at number four in Spain and was certified double Platinum in the country. It also achieved Gold status in Argentina and peaked at number 12 on the Billboard's Top Latin Albums in the United States. (Full article...)

Selected biography - show another

Pancho Villa on horseback c. 1908–1919

Francisco "Pancho" Villa (UK: /ˈpæn ˈvə/ PAN-choh VEE, US: /ˈpɑːn ˈv(j)ə/ PAHN-choh VEE-(y)ə, Spanish: [ˈpantʃo ˈβiʎa]; born José Doroteo Arango Arámbula; 5 June 1878 – 20 July 1923) was a Mexican revolutionary and prominent figure in the Mexican Revolution. He was a key figure in the revolutionary movement that forced out President Porfirio Díaz and brought Francisco I. Madero to power in 1911. When Madero was ousted by a coup led by General Victoriano Huerta in February 1913, Villa joined the anti-Huerta forces in the Constitutionalist Army led by Venustiano Carranza. After the defeat and exile of Huerta in July 1914, Villa broke with Carranza. Villa dominated the meeting of revolutionary generals that excluded Carranza and helped create a coalition government. Emiliano Zapata and Villa became formal allies in this period. Like Zapata, Villa was strongly in favor of land reform, but did not implement it when he had power.

At the height of his power and popularity in late 1914 and early 1915, the U.S. considered recognizing Villa as Mexico's legitimate president. In Mexico, Villa is generally regarded as a hero of the Mexican Revolution who dared to stand up to the United States. Some American media outlets describe Villa as a villain and a murderer. (Full article...)

In the news

2 May 2025 – Immigration policy of the second Donald Trump administration
The United States Department of Defense designates a second area on the Mexico–United States border, attached to the Fort Bliss Army base in El Paso, Texas, as a military zone to enforce immigration laws. (AP News)
1 May 2025 – 2025 Southwest United States measles outbreak
North America's three largest measles outbreaks continue to expand, with over 2,500 confirmed cases. There have been three fatalities in the United States and one in Mexico. The outbreaks began in Ontario, Canada, then surged in Texas and New Mexico, and have quickly escalated in Chihuahua, Mexico. (AP News)
29 April 2025 – Jalisco extermination camp
Alejandro Gertz Manero, Attorney General of Mexico, concluded that the Izaguirre Ranch was used by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a recruitment camp between 2021 and 2024, but found no evidence that it served as an extermination site. (AP)
24 April 2025 – Censorship in Mexico
A joint commission of the Mexican Senate approves a proposal submitted by President Claudia Sheinbaum that would grant the government the power to block and censor digital platforms, including social networks, websites, and apps, indefinitely and without a court order. The proposal will be sent to the government-aligned majority in Congress for further approval. (Milenio)
16 April 2025 – Tariffs in the second Trump administration
California Governor Gavin Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta file a lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration over the tariffs, making California the first U.S. state to do so. The lawsuit also targets the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, the law used by Trump to impose tariffs against Canada, China, and Mexico. (Politico)
14 April 2025 –
A 5.2 magnitude earthquake strikes Julian, California, United States. The earthquake, felt throughout Southern California and Baja California, caused several rockslides on California State Route 76 and the demolition of an office façade in Tecate, Baja California, Mexico due to risk of collapse caused by earthquake. (The San Diego Union-Tribune) (La Jornada)

Selected fare or cuisine - show another

A crema advertisement from Argentina

Crema is the Spanish word for cream. In the United States, or in the English language, it is sometimes referred to as crema espesa (English: "thick cream"), also referred to as crema fresca (English: "fresh cream") in Mexico. Crema fresca or crema espesa is a Mexican dairy product prepared with two ingredients, heavy cream and buttermilk. Salt and lime juice may also be used in its preparation. Crema's fat content can range between 18 and 36 percent. In Mexico, it is sold directly to consumers through ranches outside large cities, as well as being available in Mexican and Latin American grocery stores in the United States. Crema is used as a food topping, a condiment and as an ingredient in sauces. It is similar in texture and flavor to France's crème fraîche and sour cream. (Full article...)

General images

The following are images from various Mexico-related articles on Wikipedia.

Categories

Category puzzle
Category puzzle
Select [►] to view subcategories

Topics

WikiProject

You are invited to participate in WikiProject Mexico, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Mexico.

Associated Wikimedia

Mexico on Wikinews     Mexico on Wikiquote     Mexico on Wikibooks     Mexico on Wikisource     Mexico on Wiktionary     Mexico on Wikimedia Commons
News Quotations Manuals & Texts Texts Definitions Images & Media

More portals

Discover Wikipedia using portals