Matlatzinca people in the context of México (state)

The Tepanecs or Tepaneca are a Mesoamerican people who arrived in the Valley of Mexico in the late 12th or early 13th centuries. The Tepanec were a sister culture of the Aztecs (or Mexica) as well as the Acolhua and others—these tribes spoke the Nahuatl language and shared the same general pantheon, with local and tribal variations. However, some authors suspect the Tepaneca had partial Otomi or Matlatzinca origins.

The name "Tepanecas" is a derivative term, corresponding to their original mythical city, Tepanohuayan (the passing by), also known as Tepano. Ideographically it is represented as a stone, for its etymology comes from Tepan (over the stones). Their conquered territories received the name Tepanecapan (land of the tepanecas) (lit. "over the tepanecas").

Morelia (Spanish pronunciation: [moˈɾelja]; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi: Mänxuni) is the capital and most populous city of the Mexican state of Michoacán. Situated in the Guayangareo Valley in the north-central part of the state, it is the municipal seat of the municipality of Morelia. The main pre-Hispanic cultures here were the Purépecha and the Matlatzinca, but no major cities were founded in the valley during this time. The Spanish took control of the area in the 1520s. The Spanish under Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza founded a settlement here in 1541 with the name of Valladolid, which became rival to the nearby city of Pátzcuaro for dominance in Michoacán. In 1580, this rivalry ended in Valladolid's favor, and it became the capital of the viceregal province. After the Mexican War of Independence, the city was renamed Morelia in honor of José María Morelos, who hailed from the city. In 1991, the city was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its well-preserved historical buildings and layout of the historic center. It is tradition to name people born on September 30 after the city.

The city population in 2020 was 743,275 inhabitants. The municipality had 849,053 inhabitants, and the Metropolitan Area, composed of Morelia, Tarímbaro, and Charo municipalities, had 988,704 inhabitants, according to the XIV Census.