San Jose Villa de Allende is a town and seat of the municipality of Villa de Allende located 70 kilometers to the west of the city of Toluca. Villa de Allende current name was given in honor to Ignacio Allende, a hero of the Mexican War of Independence.
The modern town had a population of 1,169 as of the 2005 census and an elevation of 2,380 meters above sea level.Early human inhabitation of the area is evidenced by archeological finds such as ceramics and arrowheads, as well as stone walls with bas relief carvings. Most of these are found in the nearby settlement of San Cayetano.
The village was originally founded by the Mazahuas, with a name meaning “beautiful place” in that language. They arrived around the 7th century AD, and were under the domination of the Chichimecas. After Aztec domination, its name was changed to ‘Malacatepec’, meaning “spindle hill”. After the arrival of the Spaniards, the town fought with the Aztecs but the area was subdued by Gonzalo de Sandoval in 1521. Evangelization of the area was accomplished by friars from the Franciscan monastery at Toluca, who gave the town the name of San José Malacatepec in 1542 and built the temple of San José in 1554.
The village gained town status in 1778 when it had a population of 6,138. From colonial times to the Mexican War of Independence in 1810, the Mazahuas of the area were often subjected to being slaves or near-slaves to the colonial authorities, mostly working forcibly at the nearby haciendas of La Gavia, Sabana del Rosario, Salitre de Urendis and San Bartolo. This led the populace to embrace the arrival of José María Morelos y Pavón in the area and join the rebellion.
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