Copainalá

History

Copainalá has pre-Hispanic Zoque roots. At the end of the 15th century it is thought to have been part of a lordship in a frontier zone where Mixe, Popoluca, Mexica and Maya traders met. Its Nahuatl name is usually translated as "place of the snakes that ran".

The colonial town was founded in the 16th century, when Zoque families from scattered villages were brought together here after being evangelized by Dominican missionaries. The oldest church in town is the Santísima Trinidad, and the patron saint is San Miguel, celebrated in September.

Copainalá has long been linked to the story of Malintzin, or La Malinche. The chronicler Bernal Díaz del Castillo wrote that her parents were the rulers of a town called Painala, and many have identified that place with Copainalá. Townspeople still hold the tradition as true.

The state governor granted it the rank of city on March 5, 1925. Most residents today are mestizo, though the Copainalá variety of the Zoque language is still spoken alongside Spanish, and local musicians and dancers have worked to keep Zoque traditions alive. It was named a Pueblo Mágico on June 26, 2023.