Durango

Free and Sovereign State of Durango
Flag Coat of arms
Location within Mexico
Municipalities of Durango
Country	Mexico
Capital	Durango
Municipalities	39
Government
- Governor	Ismael Hernández Deras (PRI)
- Federal Deputies	PRI: 3 PAN: 1
- Federal Senators	PAN: 2 PRI: 1
Area Ranked 4th
- Total	123,181 km2 (47,560.4 sq mi)
Population (2005)
- Total	1,509,117(Ranked 23rd)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
HDI (2004)	0.7910 - medium Ranked 15th
ISO 3166-2	MX-DUR
Postal abbr.	Dgo.
Website	Durango State Government

Durango (Spanish pronunciation: [duˈɾaŋɡo]) is one of the constituent states of Mexico. Its population is 1,509,118.^[1] It has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja California Sur. The city of Durango is the state's capital.

Geography

The state or estado of Durango is bordered to the north by Chihuahua, to the north-east by Coahuila, to the south-east by Zacatecas, to the south-west by Nayarit, and to the west by Sinaloa. Most of the state is heavily mountainous and a good part forested; the Sierra Madre Occidental occupies the western and central part of the state. This mountain range contains a good supply of minerals, including the silver that encouraged Spanish occupation of the territory after it was discovered. These mines extend north into Chihuahua and south into the state of Zacatecas. Vast desert basins in the Laguna District are irrigated by the Nazas River.

Major crops grown in the area include cotton, wheat, corn, alfalfa, beans, sorghum, and other vegetables.

Durango is famous for its scorpions. Mexicans generally refer to the people of Durango as Alacrán de Durango (Scorpions from Durango). The demonym for the natives of Durango is Duranguense(s).

The major occupations in Durango are farming, lumbering and ranching.

History

Francisco de Ibarra, the first to colonize Durango, settled this part of the vast northern province of Nueva Vizcaya in 1563, when he founded the capital city and named it Durango for the basque town Durango, Biscay, Spain, Europe. The foundation was just one in his larger program of initiating settlements throughout the province.

This was a late colonization for the Spanish, due mostly to heavy resistance by the indigenous population. From first contact to modern times, the indigenous peoples have attempted to gain some autonomy, address grievances, and maintain traditional land ownership.

Spanish colonists became highly attracted to the Durango area for its mining and grazing prospects.

In 1823, shortly after victory over Spain in the Mexican War of Independence, Durango earned the right to become a separate state.

Municipalities

Durango is divided into 39 municipalities (municipios). See municipalities of Durango. Durango has recently experienced an increase in organized crime and vandalism.

Major communities

• Durango (Victoria de Durango)
• El Salto
• Gómez Palacio
• Lerdo (Ciudad Lerdo)
• Santiago Papasquiaro
• Tepehuanes
• Santa María del Oro
• Guanaceví
• Topia
• Peñón Blanco
• mapimi
• El Mezquital

Popular culture

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (June 2008)

• Bob Dylan co-wrote a song called "Romance in Durango" with Jacques Levy for his 1976 album Desire (album).

• In Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange, the sports car driven by Alexander deLarge and his droogies is called a "Durango 95".^[2][3]

• Punk rock band The Ramones often opened their live act with a song called "Durango 95".

• In the song Never Gonna Stop, Rob Zombie sings of the "Durango Number 95"

• Actor John Candy suffered a fatal heart attack in Durango, while filming his final motion picture Wagons East.

• In the book The House of the Scorpion, Mateo Alacran (referred to as "El Patrón"), a drug lord, was born in Durango, as was Celia. The last name he adapted, "Alacran", is a reference to the term Alacran de Durango (Durango Scorpion).

• The film Dragonball Evolution by James Wong was filmed in this state^[4].

The 1948 film The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, starring Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, and Tim Holt, was set in the state of Durango.

• In the 1970 film Moonfire, the main storyline is set here.

• In the song Spanglish by The Game he refers to the state in the end of his first verse by saying "Get it from Durango, take it to Chicago"

• Durango 95, Sheffield UK - Punk Rock band formerly known as Asylym and changing names in 1987 with new bands members Andy Bott and Dave Mcp. Durango 95 was set up by sheffield brothers Dave and Frank W from Sheffield UK. They Toured signed many record contracts and stayed together for 12 years. Even the Legendary John Peel played them on Radio 1 many times UK praising their unique and edgy sound.

Notable people

• Francisco "Pancho" Villa
• Dolores Del Rio
• Guadalupe Victoria
• Marlene Favela
• Revueltas Sánchez family

References

1. ^ As of the 2005 census
2. ^ http://www.imps4ever.info/specials/centaur/durango.html
3. ^ http://www.geocities.com/hasselhoffline/images/mm/aco/propdurango.jpg
4. ^ http://www.superherohype.com/news/topnews.php?id=6499

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Durango

• (Spanish) Durango State Government
• (Spanish) Durango 1000's of Pictures of Local Rural Communities
• John P. Schmal, "The history of indigenous Durango" detailing the series of revolts
• Territorial Division (legal text, Spanish)

v • d • e Political divisions of Mexico States of Mexico: Aguascalientes · Baja California · Baja California Sur · Campeche · Chiapas · Chihuahua · Coahuila · Colima · Durango · Guanajuato · Guerrero · Hidalgo · Jalisco · Mexico State · Michoacán · Morelos · Nayarit · Nuevo León · Oaxaca · Puebla · Querétaro · Quintana Roo · San Luis Potosí · Sinaloa · Sonora · Tabasco · Tamaulipas · Tlaxcala · Veracruz · Yucatán · Zacatecas Federal District

Coordinates: 24°56′05″N 104°54′43″W / 24.93472°N 104.91194°W / 24.93472; -104.91194