Santa Fe is the capital of the state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and the seat of.This area was occupied for at least several thousand years by indigenous peoples who built villages several hundred years ago on the current site of the city. It was known by the Tewa inhabitants as Ogha Po'oge ("White Shell Water Place"). The city of Santa Fe, founded by Spanish colonists in 1610, is the oldest state capital city in the United States and the oldest city in New Mexico. Santa Fe (meaning "holy faith" in Spanish) had a population of 69,204 in 2012. It is the principal city of a Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Santa Fe County and is part of the larger Albuquerque–Santa Fe–Las Vegas combined statistical area. The city's full name as founded remains La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asís ("The Royal City of the Holy Faith of Saint Francis of Assisi").HistorySpain and MexicoThe area of Santa Fe was originally occupied by indigenous Tanoan peoples, who lived in numerous Pueblo villages along the Rio Grande. One of the earliest known settlements in what today is downtown Santa Fe came sometime after 900. A group of native Tewa built a cluster of homes that centered around the site of today's Plaza and spread for half a mile to the south and west; the village was called Ogapoge in Tewa The Tanoans and other Pueblo peoples settled along the Santa Fe River for its water and transportation.
