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San Cristóbal de Las Casas

On March 31, 1528, the Spanish conquistador Diego de Mazariegos founded the Villa Real de Chiapas. For several years the name underwent changes, but it was not until 1829 that it was established as the City of San Cristóbal and a few years later, in 1848, Las Casas was added, in honor of Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas, a priest who began to build convents, strengthen religious communities and became the protector of the indigenous peoples. Thus arriving to the current name of San Cristóbal de Las Casas.

The history of San Cristóbal de Las Casas has gone through several conflicts of interest between the European colonizers and the native indigenous groups of the place. The Spanish colonizers designed an urban plan where the center of the city was for the purely Spanish people and the surrounding areas were designated for the regional indigenous people. This is how the barrios came about, each one unique in both culture and productivity. In this way, each neighborhood acquired traditional characteristics and trades. Each of these organized around a main square and temple dedicated to different patrons, giving way to festivities held each year.