Cerro Grande

Cerro Grande is one of only ten localities in the small municipality of Filomeno Mata, which borders Puebla state to the south and west. It lies about 9 km northeast of the municipal seat and well below it: the seat stands at around 740 m, while Cerro Grande sits at about 320 m in the foothills of the Papantla range. In 2020 it had 1,506 residents, most of them living from farming.

This is Totonac country. The municipal seat was once called Meztitlán, "place dedicated to the moon", a dependency of Mecatlán that later became Santo Domingo Meztitlán; in 1932 it took the name of the liberal journalist Filomeno Mata. The climate is warm, averaging about 23 °C, with rain in summer and early autumn, and the streams drain toward the Necaxa or Tecolutla river. The woods hold chalahuite, laurel, cedar and jonote trees, and the wildlife includes chachalacas, raccoons, rattlesnakes and coral snakes.

Festive life centres on the municipal seat, which honours Saint Rose of Lima from 28 August to 5 September with Voladores and the dances of the Negritos, Quetzales, Tejoneros, Malinches and Tocotines. On 1 and 2 November families set up altars with their dead relatives' favourite dishes, and 12 December belongs to the Virgin of Guadalupe. Huapango is the local music, wooden washing troughs called bateas are carved by hand, and pork or beef is stewed in chileajo.