According to local accounts, in approximately 1100 CE, a king named Quiana founded a large kingdom in Chinantla. This kingdom was later divided into highland and lowland sections due to internal conflicts, with the highland division centered in
San Pedro Yólox. Around 1400, the highland section was further divided, and part of the population migrated to
San Felipe Usila. Around 1464, Chinantec invaders from Chiltepec Viejo conquered part of what is now the
Choapam District and established a new kingdom that included the towns of
San Juan Petlapa, Asunción Lacova, and
San Juan Lalana, displacing the
Zapotecs and
Mixes who had been living there. This kingdom was referred to as Coatlicamac by the Aztecs, which was later hispanized to Guatinicamanes. Around 1455, the
Aztec Empire established a garrison and administrative center at
Tuxtepec in what is now northern Oaxaca. A preserved Aztec manuscript mentions a military campaign by the Aztecs against Chinantla in 1479. The Aztec ruler
Ahuitzotl conquered the Chinantecs in 1488. The Chinantecs joined
Hernán Cortés in attacking the Aztec Empire in 1519. They were noted for the unusually long
lances they fought with. However, this alliance did not last, and around 1530, the Chinantecs of Usila rebelled against the Spanish. Because of its proximity to
Veracruz and its fertility, the Chinantla was one of the most important areas of
New Spain in terms of agriculture, with crops like coffee, banana, and tobacco being introduced. However, the Chinantec language was considered very hard for Spanish missionaries to learn due to its tones, hindering the evangelization of the Chinantec people. During the
Porfiriato, the local non-indigenous elite allied itself with the dictatorship, which resulted in some non-indigenous towns receiving services but the indigenous population being marginalized. By 1910,
the liberal reform had produced haciendas devoted to the cultivation of tobacco, cocoa and coffee, and many foreigners had come to
San Juan Bautista Valle Nacional to buy land. Plantations effectively became forced labor camps for rebels and political opponents of the regime. The marginalization of the indigenous population would only intensify in the 1920s and 1930s as the
United Fruit Company and
Standard Fruit Company established a strong presence in the region until land reform forced them to withdraw in 1941. However, the region continued to experience commercialization. From 1940 to 1970, the Chinantla Baja was affected by several developmental projects, such as the
Miguel Alemán Dam and
Cerro de Oro Dam, which resulted in hundreds of Chinantec families being relocated to the nearby sections of the state of
Veracruz. ==Flora==