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^ a. Joined to the federation under the name ofCoahuila y Texas; also recognized asCoahuila y Tejas.
Coahuila,[a] formallyCoahuila de Zaragoza,[b] officially theFree and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza,[c] is one of the 31states of Mexico. The largest city and state capital is the city ofSaltillo; the second largest isTorreón and the third largest isMonclova (a former state capital); the fourth largest isPiedras Negras; and the fifth largest isCiudad Acuña.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states ofNuevo León to the east,Zacatecas to the south, andDurango andChihuahua to the west. To the north, Coahuila accounts for a 512 kilometres (318 mi) stretch of theMexico–United States border, adjacent to theU.S. state ofTexas along the course of theRio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte). With an area of 151,563 square kilometres (58,519 sq mi), it is the nation's third-largest state. It comprises 38 municipalities(municipios). In the 2020 Census, Coahuila had a population of 3,146,771.
The name Coahuila derives from native terms for the region, and has been known by variations such as Cuagüila and Cuauila. Some historians believe that this means "flying serpent", "place of many trees", or "place where serpents creep". The official name of the state is Coahuila de Zaragoza, in honor of GeneralIgnacio Zaragoza.
The Spanish explored the north of Mexico some decades after their victory inTenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztecs. Such exploration was delayed because the northern climate was harsher and there was no gold. The first Spanish settlement in the region now called Coahuila was atMinas de la Trinidad in 1577. Saltillo was settled in 1586, to form part of the province ofNueva Vizcaya of the Vice-royalty ofNew Spain. Later it became one of the first provinces ofNueva Extremadura to be explored by Europeans. Among the 16th century settlers of Saltillo and other communities in Nueva Vizcaya wereTlaxcalans, who founded an independent community bordering Saltillo, calledSan Esteban de Nueva Tlaxcala.
Coahuila y Tejas was one of the constituent states of the newly independentUnited Mexican States under their1824 Constitution, and includedTexas, Coahuila andNuevo León. Later in the same year Nuevo León was detached, but Texas remained a part of the state until 1836, when it seceded to form theRepublic of Texas. Monclova was the capital of the state from 1833 to 1835.
In 1840, Coahuila briefly became a member of the short livedRepublic of the Rio Grande. In the mid-19th century, theSánchez Navarro family owned a ranch of 6,700,000 ha (16,500,000 acres) mostly in Coahuila. It was the largest privately owned property in the Americas.[8]
In the 1840s and 1850s, Coahuila was the target of frequentComanche raids.
On February 19, 1856,Santiago Vidaurri annexed Coahuila to his state,Nuevo León, but it regained its separate status in 1868.
In July 2025, archaeologists from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) andCONANP discovered a pre-Hispanic mortuary cave in the desert mountains of Coahuila. Accessed via a narrow 50‑cm vertical shaft, the cave contained the remains of around 17 individuals, including men, women, and children, who were interred in bundled form on baskets or mats. The semi-circular chamber preserved 12 complete skulls (five of which belonged to children), and while evidence of modern looting was present, the burials share significant similarities with those at Coahuila’sCandelaria Cave. The finds are being preserved at the Regional Museum of La Laguna inTorreón.[11][12]
East of the range, the land slopes gently toward the Rio Grande, and is drained by several rivers, including theSalado and its tributary, the Sabinas River. TheTamaulipan mezquital, adry shrublandecoregion, occupies the eastern portion of the State, and extends across the Rio Grande into southern Texas.
The portion of the State west of the Sierra Madre Oriental lies on theMexican Plateau, and is part of theChihuahuan Desert. TheBolsón de Mapimí is a largeendorheic basin which covers much of the western portion of the State and extends into adjacent portions of Chihuahua, Durango, and Zacatecas. TheNazas River, which flows east from Durango, and theAguanaval River, which flows north from Zacatecas, empty into lakes in the Bolsón.Torreón, the most populous city in the State, lies on the Nazas in the irrigatedLaguna Region, the(Comarca Lagunera), which straddles the border of Coahuila and Durango.
Coahuila is largely arid or semi-arid, but the rivers of the State support extensive irrigated agriculture, particularlycotton. TheParras district in the southern part of the State produces wines and brandies. Thepine-oak forests of the Sierra Madre produce timber.
The last population census run across Mexico in the year 2020, reports Coahuila de Zaragoza as having 3,146,771 inhabitants, which, considering its size, means that the state has a very low density, in fact as low as only 15 persons per square kilometer.
Coahuila's population is mainly made up ofMestizos. Fewer than 7,500 natives reside in Coahuila, or merely 0.3% of the total population. According to the 2020 Census, 1.46% of Coahuila's population identified as Black,Afro-Mexican, or of African descent.[16]
The rest of the demographic particulars in the state are very similar to national averages, such as a high life expectancy (reaching 75 years of age) and aCatholic majority.
Basic public education in Coahuila is mainly managed by the state's Secretary of Education, but federal-sustained schools are also very common. There are also a lot of private schools in the main cities of the state.
Higher education
Some of the most recognized universities in Coahuila include:
Iberoamerican University of Torreón|Iberoamerican University (Universidad Iberoamericana)
A private university part of the Jesuit University System with a campus in Torreón and a university extension center in Saltillo.
Building at the Iberoamerican University
Technological Institute of La Laguna (Instituto Tecnológico de la Laguna)
The most recognized public technological university of La Laguna Region located in the city of Torreón.
About 95% of Mexico'scoal reserves are found in Coahuila, which is the country's top mining state.
Saltillo and the Southeast region have one of the largest automobile industry in the country and the major industry in the state, hosting companies such asGeneral Motors andStellantis assembly plants.[17]
Torreón hasMet-Mex Peñoles, a mining company. The city is the world's largestsilver producer and Mexico's largestgold producer. It also has Lala, adairy products company, which produces 40% of Mexico'smilk consumption and distribution.
As of 2005, Coahuila's economy represents 3.5% of Mexico's totalgross domestic product or US$22,874 million.[18] Coahuila's economy has a strong focus on export oriented manufacturing (i.e.maquiladora /INMEX). As of 2005, 221,273 people are employed in the manufacturing sector.[19] Foreign direct investment in Coahuila was US$143.1 million for 2005. The average wage for an employee in Coahuila is approximately 190 pesos per day.[citation needed]
On the other hand, Coahuila is the Mexican state with the highest level ofpublic debt in the nation.
Newspapers of Coahuila include:El Diario de Coahuila,El Guardián,El Heraldo de Saltillo,El Siglo de Torreón,Esto del Norte,La I (Laguna),la I (Saltillo),La Opinión Milenio,La Voz de Coahuila (Monclova),Noticias de El Sol de la Laguna,Vanguardia,Zócalo (Monclova),Zócalo (Piedras Negras),Zócalo El Periódico de Saltillo, andZócalo Saltillo.[20][21]
^Benjamin, Thomas, and William McNellie. Other Mexicos: Essays on Regional Mexican History, 1876-1911. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1984.
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