Los Altos de Jalisco


Los Altos de Jalisco, or the Jaliscan Highlands, are a geographic and cultural region in the eastern part of the Mexican State of Jalisco, famed as a bastion of Mexican culture, cradling traditions from Tequila production to Charrería equestrianism. Los Altos are part of the greater Bajío region of Mexico, considered to be one of the fastest growing regions in Mexico.
Los Altos are known for their high quality of life, for historic Mexican colonial architecture, and numerous traditional Mexican arts, primarily equestrianism, Mariachi, Tequila production, and traditional Mexican dances and festivals. A significant portion of the population consists of Mexicans of European descent, primarily descended from the criollos of Castillian, Galician, Basque, and Andalusian origin, but also from early Portuguese and Sephardic Jewish settlers, and later French, Irish, and Italian, German, Dutch, Slavic and Greek immigrants, among others.

History

The region's native inhabitants, the Chichimeca people, were conquered in the 16th century by Spanish conquistadors led by Captains Hernando Martel and Pedro de Anda in the Chichimeca War.
The first towns that inhabited the region were the Chichimeca nations, a name given by the Mexicas to a group of indigenous peoples who lived in the center and north of the country.
The casualties that the Spanish conquerors had in the region due to the Chichimeca attacks led them to answer with a warlike ethnocide tactic. They took to the Altos de Jalisco, rural Castilian militiamen, who have the great majority of French descent who arrived in Castile, Spain during early of Middle Ages to repopulate the center of Spain. However, there were also Portuguese, Basques, Italians and Flemishs, who had previously fought against Turks and Moors during the Reconquista. In this way, among Europeans and Indians, the crucible of races so uncharacteristic of this region was formed.
After the French intervention in Mexico within the early 1860s, the French forces were expelled from México under the order of General Eulogio Parra in 1866. However, some French communities stayed in the obscured areas of Los Altos, Jalisco.

Culture

Tequila

Los Altos is one of the two main tequila producing regions in the state of Jalisco, the other being the municipality of Tequila, Jalisco. The main tequila producing center in the region is Arandas and the second region is Atotonilco El Alto.

Charro

The charro tradition was strong in Jalisco, to be specified in a region called Los Altos de Jalisco. In Spain, a charro is a native of the province of Salamanca, especially in the area of Alba de Tormes, Vitigudino, Ciudad Rodrigo and Ledesma. It's likely that the Mexican charro tradition derived from Spanish horsemen who came from Salamanca and settled in Los Altos de Jalisco.

Architecture of Los Altos

Many of Los Altos's older architectural structures, including entire sections of Pre-Hispanic and colonial, have been designated World Heritage sites and Pueblo Mágico for their historical, cultural, artistic significance. Lagos de Moreno is only one city in Los Altos de Jalisco on the lists of Pueblo Magico out of 121. The architecture in Los Altos are heavy influenced by European architects during the Spanish Colonial to early WWI era.

Pilgrimage

Los Altos have many shrines. San Juan de los Lagos is the second most visited pilgrimage shrine in Mexico, after the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. The numerous shrines are important tourist attractions for the state of Jalisco:
Since 1996, Los Altos has been organized administratively by the state of Jalisco into two regions, the North Highlands and the South Highlands.

North Highlands

The North Highlands region covers 8,882 km², which represents 11% of the state's territory. The municipalities in the region are the following:
Lagos de Moreno is the municipality seat of the North Highlands. In this region, factories develop clothing, furniture, footwear, metal goods, sweets and jams. Some of the municipalities in this region have a very important livestock activity mainly in the production of dairy products.

South Highlands

The South Highlands region has 6,667 km², which is 5% of the state's surface. The municipalities of this region are the following:
Tepatitlán de Morelos is the municipality seat of the South Highlands. In this region is the most recent municipality of the State, San Ignacio Cerro Gordo, which was separated from Arandas. Traditionally Atotonilco el Alto, Ayotlán, Tototlán and Degollado belong to this southern zone of Los Altos. In general, the region has the production of tequila and the development of livestock, clothing, and various crafts.

Notable ''Alteños''

Politics