Its name derives from the Nahuatl word Coyohuacan and means “place of coyotes.” In 1332, in the current territory of Coyoacán, a group from Chalco settled. It later formed part of the Tepaneca lordship of Azcapotzalco before falling under the sway of the Triple Alliance of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan.

During the conquest of Tenochtitlan, Coyoacán allied with the Spanish, like other tributary towns of the Mexica. Once the city was taken, Hernán Cortés and his troops settled in Coyoacán, where they founded the first Ayuntamiento of the Valley of Mexico. Coyoacán was the capital of the viceroyalty until 1524, and five years later Cortés chose it as chief town of the Marquesado del Valle de Oaxaca.

In the early years of the viceroyalty, the chief of Coyoacán, baptized with the name Juan Guzmán Ixtolinque, donated the land where the convent of San Juan Bautista was founded to promote the evangelization of the natives.

During the viceregal period, Coyoacán was characterized as a very fertile place, full of orchards, churches and convents. It became a place of recreation where wealthy families from Mexico City built their summer homes.

Most of its inhabitants were dedicated to agriculture and livestock but, starting in the seventeenth century, entrepreneurs began to arrive who established small manufacturing, textile and weaving workshops. In 1824, once Mexico was an independent country, the Federal District was created and by 1855 Coyoacán formed a part of the Third Prefecture.

During the Mexican-American War it was the scene of major battles such as that of Churubusco which took place on August 20, 1847 in the grounds of the former monastery of the same name. In this confrontation, Generals Pedro María Anaya and Manuel Rincón fought against the Americans, together with the Saint Patrick’s Battalion, made up of Irish soldiers who deserted the enemy ranks.

In 1890 Porfirio Díaz established the “Del Carmen” neighborhood on the lands that formed part of the Hacienda de San Pedro. It was named in honor of his wife Carmen Romero Rubio and became a symbol of modernity. Also during the Porfiriato, in 1910, the bandstand was built in the Main Square.

After the turbulent times of the Revolution, the urbanization process of Coyoacán accelerated. The Mexico-Coyoacán road was inaugurated, the Hidalgo avenue was paved and a bus route was established that led from the center of Coyoacán to the town of Los Reyes, passing through the town of La Conchita. As a result of this process, the agricultural character of the region changed and the inhabitants of the villages and neighborhoods began to join the ranks of the factory workers. The growth of Mexico City led to the establishment of new neighborhoods and subdivisions in the surrounding towns.

By 1929 Coyoacán stopped being a municipality and become a borough of the Federal District and, by 1940, the process of urbanization was imminent. The residential areas of Xotepingo and Ciudad Jardín and Miguel Ángel de Quevedo and Pacífico avenues were created.

Coyoacán has been the residence of outstanding Mexicans in the cultural sphere: the poet José Juan Tablada; the historians Francisco Sosa, Manuel Toussaint and José Goroztiza; painters Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Novo, José Chávez Morado and Rufino Tamayo, as well as the engineer Miguel Angel de Quevedo. Historical events that occurred in Coyoacán during the 20th century include the arrival of King Carol of Romania, and the assassination of Leon Trotsky, a key figure in the Russian Revolution.

Today Coyoacán has an extensive cultural infrastructure that reflects its artistic and cultural traditions.

The Zone of Historical Monuments covers an area of 1.64 square kilometers and comprises 86 blocks that contain 50 buildings with historical value, built between the 16th and 19th centuries. It preserves part of the original 16th-century layout that was partially drawn up around the road that connected the town with San Ángel, forming a checkerboard pattern in the center and presenting a more irregular layout elsewhere.

Its religious buildings include the Church and Former Monastery of San Juan Bautista, the Former Camillian Monastery, the churches of Santa Catarina and the Immaculate Conception and the San Antonio Panzacola Chapel. Among the civil buildings, it is worth mentioning the house of Hernán Cortés, the San Antonio Panzacola bridge and the bandstand. The area is also characterized by its open spaces, including the Hidalgo, Conchita and Panzacola plazas, as well as the Centenario and Santa Catarina gardens.

On October 5, 1934 Coyoacán was declared a “Typical and Picturesque Zone” of the Federal District due to its outstanding urban and architectural characteristics and it became a Zone of Historical Monuments on December 19, 1990.