Map of Sinaloa
Sinaloa is a first-level division of Mexico. Its largest mapped city is Culiacán, with about 809,000 people in the metropolitan area. The interactive map below is centred on Sinaloa, and the tables list its 11 mapped cities along with the mountains, lakes, ports nearest to them.
- Cities Mapped
- 11
- Largest City
- Culiacán
- Country
- Mexico
- Highest Point Mapped
- 3,348 m
Interactive Map of Sinaloa
About Sinaloa
Sinaloa (Spanish pronunciation: [sinaˈloa] ), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa (English: Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 20 municipalities, and its capital and largest city is Culiacán Rosales. Other large cities include Mazatlán, Los Mochis, Guamúchil, and Guasave.
Sinaloa is located in northwest Mexico and is bordered by the states of Sonora to the northwest, Chihuahua to the north, Durango to the east, and Nayarit to the southeast. To the west, Sinaloa faces Baja California Sur, across the Gulf of California. Its natural geography is divided by the Sierra Madre Occidental, fertile river valleys, and a broad coastal plain along the Gulf of California. The state covers an area of 58,328 square kilometers (22,521 sq mi) and includes the islands of Palmito Verde, Palmito de la Virgen, Altamura, Santa María, Saliaca, Macapule, and San Ignacio.
Its economy is based on agriculture, fisheries, livestock breeding, tourism, mining, and food processing. Culturally, Sinaloa has a strong musical tradition, particularly in the banda and norteño genres, its cuisine, and the heritage of indigenous peoples such as the Yaqui and the Yoreme.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Sinaloa (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Sinaloa in Depth
History
Sinaloa belongs to the northern limit of Mesoamerica. To the north, the Fuerte River marks the region known as Aridoamerica, which includes the deserts and arid regions of northern Mexico and southwestern United States. Before European contact, the territory of Sinaloa was inhabited by groups such as the Cahitas, the Tahues, the Acaxees, the Xiximes, the Totorames, the Achires and the Guasaves.
In 1531, Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán, with a force of over 10,000 men, established a Spanish and allied Indian outpost at San Miguel de Culiacán. Over the next decade, the Cahíta suffered severe depopulation from conquest, smallpox and other diseases brought by Europeans.
Geography
The coastal plain is a narrow strip of land that stretches along the length of the state and lies between the Gulf of California and the foothills of the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range, which dominates the eastern part of the state. Sinaloa is traversed by many rivers including the Fuerte River, Culiacán River, Sinaloa River, along with smaller rivers and tributaries such as the Baluarte River, Tamazula River, and Humaya River, which flow from the Sierra Madre toward the Gulf of California. These fertile valleys and surrounding uplands form the Sinaloan dry forests and the Sonoran–Sinaloan transition subtropical dry forest ecoregions.
Economy
As of 2022, Sinaloa had a nominal GDP of approximately 668 billion pesos (US $33 billion), representing about 2.35% of Mexico’s national total, with a GDP per capita of US $10,840 and a PPP per capita of US $ 22,630. The main economic activities of Sinaloa are agriculture, fishing, livestock breeding, tourism and food processing. Sinaloa has on its license plates the image of a tomato, as the state is widely recognized for harvesting this particular fruit in great abundance from Los Mochis in the North to Culiacán in the central region of the state. Agriculture produce aside from tomatoes include cotton, beans, corn, wheat, sorghum, potatoes, soybeans, mangos, sugarcane, peanuts and squash.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Sinaloa (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Sinaloa: Key Facts
| Population | 2,966,700 (2015) |
|---|---|
| Area | 57,377 km² |
| Capital | Culiacán |
| Established | 1831 |
Facts from Wikidata Q80252 (CC0).
History of Sinaloa: Empires and States
The atlas records 4 polities whose mapped territory included part of Sinaloa, from The Spanish Empire in 1534 CE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.
| Polity | Period here |
|---|---|
| The Spanish Empire | 1534–1821 CE |
| Federated Republic of Mexico | 1824–1864 CE |
| Centralist Mexico | 1836–1845 CE |
| Mexico | 1868–2024 CE |
Historical Maps of Sinaloa
Sinaloa on the world map in each year one of these states held it:
Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.
Visiting Sinaloa
Sinaloa is a state in Northern Mexico. It is the most important agricultural state in the Federation, which has earned it the nickname "the granary of Mexico". It has the second largest fishing fleet in the country. Culturally, it is known nationally and even worldwide for its typical music, the Banda or Tambora.
Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Sinaloa (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Largest Cities in Sinaloa
11 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.
| # | Name | Population | Region | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Culiacán | 809,000 | Sinaloa | Admin-1 capital |
| 2 | Mazatlán | 368,204 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 3 | Los Mochis | 249,047 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 4 | Guasave | 96,860 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 5 | Guamúchil | 62,695 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 6 | Escuinapa | 28,248 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 7 | Eldorado | 17,365 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 8 | Villa Unión | 15,443 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 9 | La Cruz | 11,900 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 10 | El Fuerte | 11,171 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
| 11 | Altata | 1,000 | Sinaloa | Populated place |
Highest Mountains in Sinaloa
1 mountain mapped. Ranked by summit elevation above sea level. A summit on a border is listed under both countries. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Elevation | Feet | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cerro Mohinora | 3,348 m | 10,984 ft | North America |
Largest Lakes in Sinaloa
1 lake mapped. Ranked by mapped surface area. A lake on a border is listed under each country it lies in, with the area of the whole lake. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Surface Area | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Presa Miguel Hidalgo | 80 km² | Lake |
Ports in Sinaloa
2 ports mapped. Ranked by approach channel depth, the figure that limits which ships can call. Harbours link to their write-up on the page of the sea or coast they lie on. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.
| # | Name | Channel Depth | Class | Sea | Max Vessel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mazatlan | 34.7 m | Minor | Pacific Coast of North & Central America | large vessels |
| 2 | Topolobampo | 31.1 m | Small | Pacific Coast of North & Central America | large vessels |
Sinaloa: Quick Answers
- Where is Sinaloa?
- Sinaloa is a first-level division of Mexico, in North America. Its mapped cities centre on 24.5674° N, 107.4726° W.
- What is the largest city in Sinaloa?
- Culiacán is the largest city mapped in Sinaloa, with a metropolitan population of about 809,000.
- How many cities are in Sinaloa?
- YearMaps maps 11 cities and towns in Sinaloa, with a combined metropolitan population of about 1.67 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.
- What is the highest mountain in Sinaloa?
- The highest summit mapped in Sinaloa is Cerro Mohinora at 3,348 m.
- What is the largest lake in Sinaloa?
- The largest lake mapped in or beside Sinaloa is Presa Miguel Hidalgo, at about 80 km².