A
German Mexican (German:
Deutsch-Mexikaner or
Deutsch-Mexikanisch, Spanish:
germano-mexicano or
aleman-mexicano) is a Mexican citizen of
German descent or origin. Most
Ethnic Germans arrived in Mexico during the mid-to-late 19th century, spurred by government policies of
Porfirio Diaz. Although a good number of them took advantage of the liberal policies then valid in Mexico and went into merchant, industrial and educational ventures, others arrived with none or limited capital, as employees or farmers. Most settled in
Mexico City, Veracruz, Yucatán, and
Puebla. Significant numbers of German immigrants also arrived during and after the
First and
Second World Wars. The
Plautdietsch language is also spoken by the descendants of German and Dutch
Mennonite immigrants in the states of
Chihuahua,
Durango,
Zacatecas and
Aguascalientes. Other German towns lie in the states of
Nuevo León,
Jalisco,
Sinaloa,
Yucatán,
Chiapas,
Quintana Roo, and other parts of Puebla, where the German culture and language have been preserved to different extents. The German-Mexican community has largely integrated into Mexican society as a whole whilst retaining some cultural traits and in turn exerted cultural and industrial influences on Mexican society. Especially after the First World War intense processes of transculturation can be observed, particularly in
Mexico City,
Jalisco,
Nuevo León, Puebla and, notably, with the
Maya in
Chiapas. These include social, cultural and identity aspects.