The Untold Story Behind How Mexico Got Its Name

The country of Mexico was not always called as such. The country, the land, the region, were called many things by many different groups of inhabitants, including the original people of the Valley of Mexico, the Aztec people, who arrived there around 1200 AD, and the Spanish colonizers who came to Mexico in the 1500s. So how did Mexico come to be called Mexico?

The pre-Hispanic people of the Valley of Mexico referred to what we now call Mexico as Anahuac. This word meant “land surrounded by water,” but it was also used to refer to the entire universe in the native Mayan language Nahuatl. This seems logical because the human settlements of the Valley of Mexico (which isn’t really a valley at all, but a plateau surrounded by volcanic mountains) were along and among a lake system of five lakes, the largest called Texcoco. The empire that would be built by the Aztecs was right in the center of those lakes, a type of island, connected by land bridges to the shore and other islands, some natural, some man-made.

Most historians believe that the word “Mexico” came from the Nahuatl for “place of the Mexica,” who were the nomadic peoples who found their way into the Valley of Mexico from a mythical northern land called Aztlán, the ancestral home of the Aztec peoples.

Regardless of exactly where they came from, the Mexica people, later called Aztecs, would make the biggest impact on the valley it had ever seen, and the term Mexico most undoubtedly comes from them. When the Spanish arrived, the Mexica (Aztec) empire was called Mexico-Tenochtitlan, and included Mexico City, much of the surrounding area and parts of today’s nearby states, such as Estado de Mexico and Puebla.

The Spanish called Mexico “New Spain” and Mexico City was its capital, seamlessly adapting to the name when they declared the capital La Ciudad de Mexico (Mexico City) in 1585. At that time, Spaniards only referred to the capital as Mexico (the rest of the colony known as New Spain) and it wasn’t until Mexico’s independence from Spain that the name Mexico became a permanent title for all the land of the new republic.

In September 1821, when independence was finally declared from Spain, Agustín de Iturbide was officially declared the first emperor of Mexico and from that moment forward the country was officially known as Mexico, or the Mexican Empire. Today Mexico is officially the Federation of Mexican States, named as such after the 1824 constitution, a decision that Mexico’s current constitution has upheld since its last revisions in 1917.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

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