Zihuatanejo "Place of Women"

"The Fat Mermaid"

 The name Zihuatanejo stems from the Nahuatl Cihuatlan, meaning “the place of women”. In pre-Colombian times, the Tarascan leader Calzonzin settled in the area and he had many wives and daughters. There was probably many more women than men.
The Spaniards usually wrote the name as Ciguatan (because that is how the word "Cihuatlan" sounded to them.)  Later they added the diminutive ending of "ejo" to refer it as a "small place" or "place without major importance".  About two hundred years ago, the name was changed to Zihuatanejo.
Zihuatanejo, today, has a lot of public art on the streets, near the bay, in the parks and on the highway.  There is a series of statues of women.