The
Zócalo is the common name of the
main square in central
Mexico City. Prior to the
colonial period, it was the main ceremonial center in the Aztec city of
Tenochtitlan. The plaza used to be known simply as the "Main Square" or "Arms Square," and today its formal name is
Plaza de la Constitución (
Constitution Square). This name does not come from any of the
Mexican constitutions that have governed the country but rather from the
Cádiz Constitution which was signed in Spain in the year 1812. However, it is almost always called the
Zócalo today. Plans were made to erect a column as a monument to
Independence, but only the base, or
zócalo (meaning "
plinth") was built. The plinth was destroyed long ago but the name has lived on. Many other Mexican towns and cities, such as
Oaxaca and
Guadalajara, have adopted the word
zócalo to refer to their main plazas, but not all.