Etymology and Founding
"Zacatecas" is the Nahuatl-derived name for one of the indigenous peoples who inhabited the region before the arrival of the Spanish. The name ultimately derives from the Nahuatl word for a type of grass common in the region, zacatl. The region where this grass grew was originally called Zacatlan, and its inhabitants, Zacateca, pluralized in Mexican Spanish to Zacatecas.
Besides the Zacatecas, the Caxcan, Guachichil, and Tepehuan were also reported by the Spanish to be inhabiting the region which comprises the modern state of Zacatecas.
On September 8, 1546, with the discovery of its mines, the present city of Zacatecas was founded. It was originally baptized "Minas de los Zacatecas" or "Mines of the Zacatecas". Its rich mineral wealth gave the Spanish Crown a great amount of income (the silver mines in Zacatecas and Potosi, Bolivia, were the Spanish crown's largest sources of income during colonialism), which gave the city of Zacatecas the title of "Ciudad de Nuestra Señora de los Zacatecas".
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