Wikipedia
Catemaco is a city in Catemaco Municipality located in the south of the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located on Lake Catemaco, with the municipality stretching north to the Gulf of Mexico. Catemaco is a tourist destination with its main attractions being the lake, remnants of the region’s rainforest and a tradition of sorcery/witchcraft that has its roots in the pre Hispanic period and mostly practiced by men. This tradition is well known in Mexico and attracts clients from various walks of life, including businessmen and national level politicians. Catemaco holds an annual event in March dedicated to sorcery which can draw up to 5,000 visitors.
Catemaco Municipality is one of the 212 municipalities that make up the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located in the state's Los Tuxtlas. The municipal seat is the city of Catemaco.
In the 2005 INEGI Census, the municipality reported a total population of 46,702, of whom 22,965 lived in the municipal seat. Ethnic composition is primarily of mestizo origins. Indigenous language speakers number less than 500.
The municipality of Catemaco covers a total surface area of 710.67 km² along the Gulf of Mexico between the foothills of Volcano San Martín Tuxtla and the Sierra Santa Marta, and incorporate Laguna Catemaco and Laguna Sontecomapan plus a large part of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve. Catemaco borders the municipalities of San Andrés Tuxtla to the west, Hueyapan de Ocampo and Soteapan to the south and Tatahuicapan de Juárez and Mecayapan to the east.
Economically Catemaco depends on a mix of tourism, cattle ranching, fishery and agriculture. Statistically the municipality ranks as one of the poorer ones in Veracruz.