Colima, Colima, Mexico

Facts & Statistics
Place Name	Colima
Pronunciation	ko-LEE-mah
Place Status (Type)	state
Capital is	COLIMA
Population	428,510 (1990)
Location	Colima, Mexico, North America
Latitude	19°27'N
Longitude	103°30'W

Colima (ko-LEE-mah), state ( 2,010 sq mi/5,206 sq km; 1990 pop. 428,510), SW Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean; Colima; 19°27'N 103°30'W. The 2d smallest in pop. and one of the smallest in area of the Mexican states, Colima is wedged bet. Jalisco, which nearly surrounds it, and Michoacan. It includes the isls. of Revillagigedo off the coast. The port is Manzanillo. Most of the state lies within the cool highlands of the Sierra Madre Occidental. The smoking volcano, Colima (12,533 ft/3,820 m), and the neighboring peak, Nevado de Colima (13,911 ft/4,240 m), are just across the border in Jalisco. Sugarcane, bananas, tropical fruits, as well as some of Mexico's finest coffee, are Colima's primary agr. prods. Colima is also one of Mexico's largest iron-producing states, with the ore processed at Lazaro Cardenas. Economic development has been hindered by inadequate communications, although tourism is being developed along the coast. Once part of the anc. Aztec kingdom of Colima, the region was conquered by the Spanish in the 16th cent. Wars bet. conservative and liberal forces during the 19th cent. brought much fighting to the state.