Yucatán

American  

[yoo-kuh-tan, yoo-kah-tahn] / ˌyu kəˈtæn, ˌyu kɑˈtɑn /

Also Yucatan

noun

1. a peninsula in SE Mexico and N Central America comprising parts of SE Mexico, N Guatemala, and Belize.

2. a state in SE Mexico, in N Yucatán Peninsula. 14,868 sq. mi. (38,510 sq. km). Mérida.

---

Yucatán British  

/ jukaˈtan, ˌjuːkəˈtɑːn /

noun

1. a state of SE Mexico, occupying the N part of the Yucatán peninsula. Capital: Mérida. Pop: 1 655 707 (2000). Area: 39 340 sq km (15 186 sq miles)

2. a peninsula of Central America between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, including the Mexican states of Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo, and part of Belize: a centre of Mayan civilization from about 100 _bc to the 18th century. Area: about 181 300 sq km (70 000 sq miles)

---

Yucatán Cultural  

1. Peninsula mostly in southeastern Mexico, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico.

---

Discover More

It is the location of many Mayan ruins.

Example Sentences

“Previously, the Americans leaving were super-adventurous and well-credentialed,” said Expatsi founder Jen Barnett, a 54-year-old Alabama native who moved to Yucatán, Mexico, in 2024.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026

This stands in contrast to famous sites like the Chicxulub crater near Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, which is directly linked to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

From Science Daily • Dec. 19, 2025

Can you tell readers a bit about your personal connection with the Yucatán Peninsula and Quintana Roo specifically?

From Salon • Jan. 4, 2025

Tropical Storm Helene is strengthening in the Caribbean as it heads towards Mexico's Yucatán peninsula.

From BBC • Sep. 25, 2024

Since that day, I’ve left my footprints in many lands: the frozen wastelands of the Arctic, the bush country of Old Mexico, and the steaming jungles of Yucatán.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls