Campeche

Campeche is the name of a state in Mexico, as well as the capital city of that state.

The City of Campeche is located at latitude 19.85°N , longitude 90.53°W, on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico. The city of Campeche was founded in 1540 by Spanish Conquistadores as San Francisco de Campeche atop the preexisting Maya city of Canpech or Kimpech. The Pre-Columbian city was described as having 3,000 houses and various monuments, of which little trace remains. The city retains many of the old colonial Spanish city walls and fortifications which protected the city (not always successfully) from pirates and buccaneers. Campeche was the principle port of Yucatan until well into the 19th century, and the historically second largest and most important city in the Peninsula (after Merida) until the end of the 20th century and the increased development in Quintana Roo. The City's population estimate for 2002 was 230,910 people.

The State of Campeche was long a part of Yucatan and shared it's history through the mid 19th century. Campeche broke away from Yucatan and became a separate state of the United States of Mexico on August 7, 1857. Campeche is bordered by the Mexican states of Yucatan to the north east, Quintana Roo to the east, and Tabasco to the south west. To the south it is bordered by the Peten department of Guatemala, to the south east by Belize, and to the west by the Gulf of Mexico. The area of Campeche is 56,798 km square (about 21,924 square miles). The Campeche State population according to the 1998 census was 708,041 people. ISO 3166-2 is MX-CAM.

In addition to the City of Campeche, the State of Campeche includes the cities of Champoton, Ciudad Del Carmen, and Escarcega, the towns of Bolonchen, Calkiní, Dzitbalché, Hecelchakan, Hopelchen, Lerma, Tenabo, and Sabancuy, and many ruins of the Maya civilization such as Becan, Calacmul[?], Civiltuk, Dzibilnocac, Etzna[?], Hochob, Holactun, Rio Bec[?], Uxul, Xicalango, Xpuhil[?], and Xtampak.

The state is divided into the Ayuntamientos or Departments of Campeche, Carmen, Candelaria, Escárcega, Calkiní, Calakmul, Champotón, Hecelchakán, Hopelchen, Palizada, and Tenabo.