San Pedro Cholula
| San Pedro Cholula | ||
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| Municipality | ||
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 San Pedro Cholula
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| Coordinates: 19°03′48″N 98°18′23″W / 19.06333°N 98.30639°WCoordinates: 19°03′48″N 98°18′23″W / 19.06333°N 98.30639°W | ||
| Country |
 Mexico
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| State | Puebla | |
| Founded | 500-200 BCE | |
| Municipal Status | 1861 | |
| Government | ||
| • Municipal President | Francisco Andres Cobarrubias Pérez | |
| Area | ||
| • Municipality | 51.03 km2 (19.70 sq mi) | |
| Elevation (of seat) | 2,190 m (7,190 ft) | |
| Population (2005) Municipality | ||
| • Municipality | 113,436 | |
| • Urban area | 82,964 | |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) | |
San Pedro Cholula is a municipality in the Mexican state of Puebla and one of two municipalities which made up the city of Cholula. The city has been divided into two sections since the pre Hispanic era, when revolting Toltec-Chichimecas pushed the formerly dominant Olmec-Xicallanca to the eastern side of the city in the 13th century. The new lords called themselves Cholutecas and built a new temple to Quetzalcoatl on the San Pedro side, which eventually eclipsed the formerly prominent Great Pyramid of Cholula, now on the San Andrés side. When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the city of Cholula was an important religious and economic center, but the center of power was on the San Pedro side, centered on what is now the main city plaza and the San Gabriel monastery. The division of the city persisted and San Pedro remained the more dominant, with Spanish families moving onto that side and the rest of the population quickly becoming mestizo. Today, San Pedro is still more commercial and less residential than neighboring San Andrés with most of its population employed in industry, commerce and services rather than agriculture. Although Cholula's main tourist attraction, the Pyramid, is in San Andrés, San Pedro has more tourism infrastructure such as hotels, restaurants and bars.
San Pedro is one of two municipalities which make up the city of Cholula, or formally Cholula de Rivadavia. This city is divided into eighteen barrios or neighborhoods, ten of which are on the San Pedro side. The division of the city into two semi-separate halves has its roots in the pre Hispanic period, when the Olmec-Xicallancas were pushed to the east side of the city by the rebelling Toltec-Chichimeca ethnicity. The division remained in the colonial period with San Pedro quickly becoming a mix of Spanish and indigenous with San Andrés remaining mostly indigenous for the rest of the period. Today, San Andrés still has the higher indigenous population.
When the Spanish arrived the San Pedro side was still dominant, with the Quetzalcoatl Temple (on which now stands the San Gabriel monastery) overshadowing the Great Pyramid, which was already overgrown. This side contains what is considered the center of the city, large plaza with several important buildings, including the San Gabriel monastery, facing it.
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Wikipedia