San Ignacio

San Ignacio, formerly El Cayo, or Cayo, town, west-central Belize. It lies along the Belize River near the Guatemalan border. San Ignacio and its sister town Santa Elena make up Belize’s second largest urban area. The two towns are separated by the Macal River and Belize’s only suspension bridge. With Benque Viejo del Carmen, which is about 8 miles (13 km) southwest, San Ignacio traditionally dealt in chicle and lumber, but these products have now largely been replaced by cattle and corn (maize), beans, and rice. Some trade is carried on with Guatemala. This ethnically diverse town consists of Creoles, Maya Indians, mestizos, a substantial number of Mennonites (whose first settlement near San Ignacio dates from 1958), and other small immigrant groups. Pop. (2005 est.) urban agglom.,16,800.