Map Toluca

Toluca, formally: Toluca de Lerdo is the state capital of Mexico State as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. It is the center of a rapidly growing urban area, now the fifth largest in Mexico. It is located 63 kilometers (39 mi) west-southwest of Mexico City and only about 45 minutes by car to the western edge of the Distrito Federal. According to the 2005 census, the city of Toluca has a population of 467,713, with 747,512 as the total municipal population. The city is the eighth largest in the State of Mexico in population, whereas the municipality is the fourth largest. The municipality of Toluca, along with twelve other municipalities make up the metropolitan population of 1,610,786 as of 2005, making it the fifth most populous metropolitan area in Mexico and the largest entirely within the State of México. When Toluca was founded by the Matlazincas, its original name was Nepintahihui (land of corn). The current name is based on the Náhuatl name for the area when it was renamed by the Aztecs in 1473. The name has its origin in the word tollocan that comes from the name of the god Tolo + can (place) to mean "place of Tolo". It is also referred to in a number of Aztec codices as Tolutépetl, meaning hill of the god Tolo, referring to the nearby volcano.The name Toluca de Lerdo was adopted in 1861 in honor of President Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada.