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Colima:
Colima
State is located on the western side of Mexico on the
Pacific coast, ranging from the southern slopes of the
Fuego de Colima volcano to the Pacific coastal plain. It
lies between 18º 41' and 19º 27' north latitude and
103º 30' and 104º 37' west longitude.
It
is bounded on the north, east, and west by the State
of Jalisco; on the southeast by
the State of Michoacan, and
on the southwest by the Pacific Ocean. It is roughly
triangular in shape, with its vertex at the cone of the
Fire Volcano and its base along the Pacific coast.
Colima
has an area of 5,455 sq km (2,106 sq mi), which
represents only 0.3% of the total Mexican territory and
a population of approximately 542,627 inhabitants. It is
fourth smallest of all Mexican states, before the State
of Tlaxcala, the State of
Morelos and the State of
Aguascalientes. The Revillagigedo
archipelago is part of Colima (area of 167 sq km or 64
sq mi) and was transferred to Colima by President Benito
Juarez in 1861.
Its
name comes from a Nahoa or Mexican word meaning
"old kingdom" or "domain of the
lord". "Coliman" was derived from "Colli",
which means hill, volcano or grandfather, and "Maitl",
which means land or domain. In other words, it means
"Place conquered by our grandparents or
ancestors" or "Place dominated by the Old God
or the Fire God", a reference to the Fuego de
Colima volcano.
Because
of it natural regions and geographical location, Colima
has great climatic contrasts between the coastal and
mountain zones. In the coastal zone and in the Armeria
river valley (the cities of Tecoman,
Armeria, and Manzanillo),
the climate is warm and humid with an average
temperature
of 26º C. In the high altitude areas near the volcano,
the climate is mild with an average temperature of 17º
C.
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