State (pop., 2000: 1,658,210), northern Yucatán Peninsula , southeastern Mexico.
It covers an area of 14,827 sq mi (38,402 sq km); its capital is Mérida . Yucatán occupied virtually the entire peninsula when it became a state in 1824, but the creation of the states of Campeche (1858) and Quintana Roo (1902) from parts of Yucatán, as well as later boundary changes, reduced it to its present size. Long occupied by rural Maya Indians who speak little Spanish, it is the site of many ancient Maya ruins.