Conín

Conín (also known by his Christian name Hernando [Fernando] de Tapia) was a Native American conquistador of the Otomí people, who helped the Spaniards conquer territories in the central part of Mexico during the 16th century.

After the conquest of Tenochtitlan by the Spanish in 1521, Conín left Xilotepec with his family and lived with the Chichimeca tribes in Andamaxei (Otomi for "Place of the Ball Game") in the Bajío (present day Querétaro).

[1][2] Around 1528 or 1529 the conquistador Hernán Pérez de Bocanegra (along with a contingent of warriors from the newly conquered Tarascan Empire) arrived in the region seeking to make an alliance with Conín.

[1][2] When Hernán Pérez de Bocanegra initially arrived at Andamaxei, his Tarascan allies called it Queréndaro which means "Place of Pines" in the Purépecha language.

[4] During the 1540s the real work of foundation began with the construction of irrigation ditches and an influx of Spanish, Otomí, Nahua, and other indigenous tribes attracted by the fertile land and relative peace.

A statue honoring Conín located at the entrance to the city of Querétaro coming from de Mexico City–Querétaro highway