Kopomá

Kopomá is a small town about 45 km southwest of Mérida, the seat of one of Yucatán's smallest municipalities, on the road from Mérida to Campeche between Chocholá and Maxcanú. It had 2,211 inhabitants in the 2020 census. The Maya name is explained in different ways: Spanish-language Wikipedia gives "the place that does not sink", while the state government's municipal page offers "deep-water hollow".

Before the conquest the area was under the Ah Canul chiefdom. In colonial times it was held in encomienda; in 1734 it is recorded under José Pardío. In 1825 it belonged to the Camino Real district, and in 1935 it was split off from Maxcanú to become the seat of its own municipality. The municipality is tiny, about 260 km², and besides the seat its main community is San Bernardo, a former henequen hacienda; the smaller settlements of Santa Clara and Concepción make up the rest.

The town's landmark is the colonial church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción on the main square; its exact building date is not known. It is a modest church beside the water tower and is often closed during the day. Cenote San Tito, inside the well of a private house, takes visitors for about 30 pesos, though the way down is precarious. The main fiesta is on 15 May for San Isidro Labrador, patron of farmers. Most visitors pass straight through on the highway, but Kopomá makes a handy stop on the way to San Bernardo, whose old hacienda now houses a museum on the henequen industry, and to Oxkintok and the Calcehtok caves to the south.