Acuitzio del Canje, Michoacán

19°30′N 101°20′W / 19.500°N 101.333°W / 19.500; -101.333Country MexicoState MichoacánMunicipalityAcuitzioElevation2,080 m (6,820 ft)Time zoneUTC-6 (CST) • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)

Acuitzio del Canje is a town in the Mexican state of Michoacán. It serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of Acuitzio.

The area was originally settled in pre-Hispanic times. By 1620, it was a community of 20 families, with a hospital. In the early years of Mexican independence, an ayuntamiento was established there.

Name

"Acuitzio" is a word of Purépecha origin that means "place of snakes". The epithet "del Canje" (literally: "of the exchange") refers to an exchange of prisoners of war that took place in the town on 5 December 1865, during the French Intervention. On 16 December 1901, the State Congress enacted legislation for Acuitzio's name to be changed to Acuitzio del Canje.

References

• Recorrido por Acuitzio del Canje
• Acuitzio Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México (INAFED)
• Acuitzio (municipal government web page)