New Mex'ico (Sp. Nuevo Mexico or Mejico, nwā'vo mêh'He-ko; Fr. Nouveau-Mexique, noo'vö'-mêx'eek'; Ger. Neu-Mexico, noi-méx'e-ko), a southwestern territory of the United States, bounded N. by Colorado, E. by Oklahoma and Texas, S. by Texas and Mexico, and W. by Arizona. It lies between lon. 103° and 109° W. and lat. 31° 20' and 37° N., and has an area of 122,580 square miles...
Population-Nine-tenths of the white people are of Mexican origin, with a dash of the Indian blood, and speak the Spanish language. Many of them have but lately emerged from peonage. In 1850 the pop. was 61,547; in 1860, 93,516; in 1870 (after the setting off of large are: to Arizona and Colorado) 91,879, exclusive of the tribal Indians, who, in 1874, numbered 25,268, of whom about 10,000 were Pueblo Indians, lawful citizens of the United States. The other Indians are Navajos, Apaches, Utes, &c. The Mexicans and Pueblos are Roman Catholics; but the majority of the tribal Indians are un-Christianized. They have recently begun to make good progress in civilization. The English-speaking people are mostly engaged in mining operations. Pop. in 1880, 119,565; in 1890, 153,593.
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