The Borough and City
Iztapalapa today is a borough of the Federal District of Mexico City, centered on what used to be an independent settlement with its origins in the pre-Hispanic period. It has a territory of 116.67km2 (11,506 hectares), and is located on the east side of the Federal District bordering the boroughs of Iztacalco, Xochimilco, Tláhuac, Coyoacán and Benito Juárez. The State of Mexico borders the borough on the each side, and Iztapalapa has strong cultural and economic ties to this part of the state.
The borough was created in 1928, centered on and named after a formerly independent municipality within the Federal District, which already had governing authority over a number of surrounding communities. The modern borough is made up of 15 “barrios” or neighborhoods, considered to be part of city of Iztapalapa, and 18 other “pueblos” or communities outside of it. To distinguish the original city of Iztapalapa from the rest of the borough, it was officially named Iztapalapa de Cuitláhuac in 2006 in honor of the tenth Aztec emperor. However, eight of the barrios are considered to be the historic center of the city of Iztapalapa, which are La Asunción, San Ignacio, Santa Barbara, San Lucas, San Pablo, San Miguel, San Pedro and San José. Records of the “eight barrios of Iztapalapa” go back at least until 1898. Borough authorities have sought “Barrios Mágicos Turísticos” (Magical Tourism Neighborhoods) status for these, for a program similar to the “Pueblos Mágicos” tourism program run by the federal government. The goal is to attract visitors to these neighborhoods as well as other landmarks of the borough such as the Cerro de la Estrella, Pueblo Culhuacán, the Churubusco Gardens, La Magdalena Atlazolpa, Los Reyes, San Antonio Culhuacán, Mexicalzingo, the San Lorenzo Cemetery, San Andrés Tetepilco and San José Aculco.
Read more about this topic: Iztapalapa, Mexico City
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