Acambay

Acambay sits at about 2,440 meters at the foot of the Mesa Ahumada, and its name is usually traced to an Otomí word that means something like “God's crags”. The Otomí have lived here for centuries; the walled hilltop center of Huamango, just outside town, was their great ceremonial site between roughly 850 and 1350, and Otomí is still spoken in many of the surrounding villages.

The town you see today is largely a 20th-century rebuild. On November 19, 1912, a strong earthquake centered in the Acambay valley flattened much of the town and nearby villages, and reconstruction of the parish church, clock and town hall stretched over the following decades. The Museo Regional Antonio Ruiz Pérez holds a large collection of archaeological pieces recovered from Huamango, and it makes a good companion to a visit to the ruins.

Acambay is also a place for its festivals. The town fiesta for San Miguel Arcángel on September 29 brings dancers from the surrounding communities, and the carnival before Lent, with floats and costumes, is one of the best known in the north of the state.