Comitán

by admin · Published October 11, 2017 · Updated August 23, 2023

Comitán, formally Comitán de Domínguez, for Belisario Domínguez, is the fourth-largest city in the Mexican state of Chiapas. The town is located in the east-central part of Chiapas, near the border with Guatemala.

Comitán is the seat of government of the municipality of the same name. The municipality has an area of 1,043.30 sq km. Its largest other community is the town of Villahermosa Yalumá.

The original name given by the local Maya peoples is Balún Canán (“Nine stars”).

The name was later changed to Comitán de las Flores and, in 1915, to Comitán de Domínguez, after Dr. Belisario Domínguez, who gave a memorable speech in Congress against the dictator Victoriano Huerta for which he was murdered.

Comitán is also a popular tourist destination, mostly for Mexican nationals, though some foreign visitors can also be seen. The town possesses colonial architecture, narrow avenues, and clean streets.

The climate is cool most of the year and can get quite chilly from October to March.

Comitán is approximately 2 hours away from San Cristobal by bus and approximately 3 hours away from Tuxtla. It is common for locals to travel 2 hours on the bus to see San Cristobal and then travel an additional hour in order to reach Tuxtla.

ComitanState of Chiapas