MORELOS

inland state, central Mexico. It is bordered by the Federal District on the north and by the states of Puebla on the east and southeast, Guerrero on the south and southwest, and Mxico on the west. Its 1,911-sq-mi (4,950-sq-km) territory lies on the southern slope of the central Mexican Plateau, its surface roughly broken by mountain ranges. The valleys thus formed give Morelos a variety of climates and vegetation types. It is drained by the Ro Amacuzac, a northern tributary of the Mescala, or Balsas. The state is named after Jos Mara Morelos y Pavn, one of the heroes of Mexico's war for independence. Morelos was also the birthplace of Emiliano Zapata, a leader of one of the revolutionary factions of the Mexican Revolution. Zapata conducted many of his military campaigns against the central government in Morelos. Morelos is one of the most flourishing agricultural states of Mexico, producing sugarcane, rice, corn (maize), wheat, fruits, and vegetables. Although the state is supposed to have several of the minerals found in that part of Mexico (silver, mercury, iron, lead, gold, petroleum, and coal), its mining industries have not been developed. Railways and a superhighway cross the state, linking Cuernavaca, the state capital, with Mexico City and Acapulco. The population includes a large percentage of Indians and mestizos. Pop. (1980) 947,000.