San Andrés Azumiatla

Although it belongs to the state capital's municipality, San Andrés Azumiatla feels a long way from the city. It lies in the south-west of the municipality of Puebla, south of the Valsequillo reservoir and next to the border with Ocoyucan, about 17 km from the centre and 2,142 metres up. As one of the capital's 17 auxiliary boards (juntas auxiliares), it is run by an auxiliary president and four councillors elected by plebiscite every three years.

The village has grown fast. The Enciclopedia de los Municipios put it at about 6,800 people, mostly farmers; the 2020 census counted 11,692 (5,882 men and 5,810 women) in 3,134 homes, across a built-up area of about 4 km². It is also a place of real hardship: a 2010 Coneval report named it the most marginalised part of its electoral district, with 92% of residents lacking health coverage and 63% of homes without piped water.

The heart of the village is the parish church of San Andrés Apóstol, in the archdiocese of Puebla. We found no documented etymology for the name, though azumiatl is the Nahuatl source of azumiate, the southern Mexican name for the shrub also called jara amarilla. A state road south of Valsequillo links it with Los Ángeles Tetela to the east and Santa Clara Ocoyucan to the west. There are no tourist services; it is a place to see the rural side of the Puebla capital.