Hecelchakán

City in the Mexican state of Campeche

City and municipal seat in Campeche, Mexico

20°10′0″N 90°8′0″W / 20.16667°N 90.13333°W / 20.16667; -90.13333Country

MexicoStateCampecheMunicipalityHecelchakánArea

• Total514.28 sq mi (1,331.99 km²)Population

(2010)

• Total10,285Time zoneUTC−6 (Central (US Central)) • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (Central)

Hecelchakán (Spanish pronunciation: [xekeltʃaˈkan]) is a city in the Mexican state of Campeche. The city is located some 70 km to the north of the state capital Campeche. It is the seat of the Hecelchakán Municipality. As of 2010, the city of Hecelchakán had a population of 10,285.^[1]

The name comes from the Maya words jeʼelel (rest) and chakʼan (savanna).

It is at an altitude of 10 m above sea level.

Geography

Climate

Climate data for Hecelchakán
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	30.8 (87.4)	31.9 (89.4)	34.4 (93.9)	36 (97)	36.8 (98.2)	35.2 (95.4)	34.7 (94.5)	34.6 (94.3)	34 (93)	32.7 (90.9)	31.0 (87.8)	30.5 (86.9)	33.6 (92.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	16.3 (61.3)	17.1 (62.8)	19.0 (66.2)	21.0 (69.8)	22 (72)	22.4 (72.3)	21.7 (71.1)	21.8 (71.2)	21.9 (71.4)	20.2 (68.4)	18.2 (64.8)	16.9 (62.4)	19.9 (67.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	20 (0.8)	20 (0.8)	15 (0.6)	30 (1.2)	130 (5)	170 (6.7)	180 (7.2)	190 (7.3)	210 (8.2)	100 (4)	53 (2.1)	46 (1.8)	1,160 (45.7)
Source: Weatherbase ^[2]

History

The city was founded close to a cenote by inhabitants of the former city of Xkalumkin, between the years 1500 and 1600. In this city some important historic events took place, such as the battle between Don Francisco de Paula Toro and the federalists, led by Don Felipe Montero, who was defeated.^{[citation needed]}

In 1840, the district of Hecelchakán included the towns of Pomuch, Pocboc, Tenabo, Tepakán, San Antonio Sahcabchén, Dzitbalché, Bécal, Nunkiní, and Calkiní.

Around 1846, the district of Hecelchakán included three parishes: Hecelchakán, Calkiní and Bécal.

On December 7, 1915, when decree no. 51 approved a new law of interior administration, Hecelchakán became one of the eight free municipalities of the new state of Campeche. That law came into effect on January 1, 1916.

In 1957 Hecelchakán was given city status by Governor of Campeche Alberto Trueba Urbina.

References

(in Spanish) Link to tables of population data from Census of 2005 INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática
(in Spanish) Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México: Encyclopedia for Mexican Municipalities (in Spanish)

^ "Hecelchakán". Catálogo de Localidades. Secretaría de Desarrollo Social (SEDESOL). Retrieved 23 April 2014.
^ "Weatherbase: Historical Weather for Hecelchakán, Campeche". Weatherbase. 2011. Retrieved on November 24, 2011.