is a cultural, economic and political region in Western

Oaxaca Oaxaca, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca, is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of the Mexico, United Mexican States. It is divided into municipalities of Oaxaca, 570 munici ...

and neighboring portions of

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

Guerrero Guerrero, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guerrero, is one of the 32 states that compose the administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guerrero, 85 municipalities. The stat ...

in south-central

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, which refers to the home of the

Mixtec people The Mixtecs (), or Mixtecos, are Indigenous Mesoamerican peoples of Mexico inhabiting the region known as La Mixteca of Oaxaca and Puebla as well as La Montaña Region and Costa Chica Regions of the state of Guerrero. The Mixtec culture ...

. In their languages, the region is called either , or . Two-thirds of all Mixtecs live in the region, and the entire national population of Mixtecs in Mexico was 500,000 in 1999. The region covers some where two of the country's mountain ranges, the Neo-Volcanic Belt and

Sierra Madre del Sur The Sierra Madre del Sur is a mountain range in southern Mexico, extending from southern Michoacán east through Guerrero, to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in eastern Oaxaca. Geography The Sierra Madre del Sur joins with the Eje Volcánico Transv ...

, converge.

Geography

La Mixteca is a country of great contrasts. The Sierra Madre del Sur and the Neo-Volcanic Belt mark its northern limits. To the east, it is defined by the Cuicatlán Valley and the Central Valleys of Oaxaca. To the west, the Mixteca region is adjacent to the valleys of

Morelos Morelos, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos, is a landlocked state located in south-central Mexico. It is one of the 32 states which comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Mun ...

and the central portion of

. To the south lies 200 miles of

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

coastline. Because of the presence of the major mountains of the

Sierra Mixteca The Sierra Mixteca is a mountainous region located between the states of Puebla and Oaxaca in south-central Mexico, in the region known as La Mixteca. It is also known as the Nudo Mixteco or Escudo Mixteco (Mixtec Shield) and, in Nahuatl, as Z ...

, communications with the rest of the country are difficult. The region tends to be remote, poor, and little-visited. The region is conventionally divided into three separate areas, defined by the prevailing height of the terrain: *Mixteca Baja ("Low Mixteca"): northwest Oaxaca and southwest Puebla. *Mixteca Alta ("High Mixteca"): northeast Guerrero and western Oaxaca. *Mixteca de la Costa ("Coastal Mixteca"): the area also known as the Costa Chica, the remote Pacific coastline of eastern Guerrero and western Oaxaca, home to Mixteca, Amuzgo, and

Afro-Mexicans Afro-Mexicans (), also known as Black Mexicans (), are Mexicans of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. As a single population, Afro-Mexicans include individuals descended from both free and enslaved Africans who arrived to Mexi ...

References

{{Authority control Mixtec Regions of Mexico Mixteca Mixteca Mixteca Geography of Mesoamerica Sierra Madre del Sur

Geography

See also

References