YUCATAN, ARCHDIOCESE of. - City and archdiocese in the state of the same name in Mexico (North America).
It has an area of 52,000 sq. km, with a population of 518,000 inhabitants, of whom 510,000 are Catholics; it has 45 parishes served by 86 diocesan priests and 22 religious; it has 1 seminary, 4 male religious communities, and 11 female ones (Ann. Pont. 1953, p. 459).
Y. was the first region of Mexico in which the Gospel was preached (16th cent.). In 1517 Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba founded there the first parish, and Pope Leo X, by the bull Sacri apostolatus ministerio, raised it to a diocese on 27 Jan. 1518. The first bishop was Msgr. Francisco Toral, who took possession of the diocese on 15 Aug. 1562 and attended the First and Second Councils of Mexico.
YUCATAN - Y.W.C.A.
It was suffragan to Messico until 1891, when it became suffragan to the new archdiocese of Oaxaca. On 11 Nov. 1906 Bl. Pio X raised it to the rank of metropolitan see, assigning to it as suffragans the dioceses of Campeche and Tabasco. The Cathedral is dedicated to St. Ildefonso.