Taos, New Mexico

Taos (/taʊs/) is a town in Taos County, in the north-central region of New Mexico. Situated between the Rio Grande Gorge and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, it is located roughly 50 miles south of the Colorado border. Taos serves as the county seat of Taos County, of which it is the largest municipality, with an estimated population of 6,567 as of 2021.

The town of Taos was incorporated in 1934, although humans have lived in the adjacent Taos Pueblo—a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the town's namesake—for roughly a millennium; the town's name derives from the native Taos language meaning "(place of) red willows". Initially founded by Spanish colonists in 1615 as Don Fernando de Taos, it was only intermittently occupied until the late 18th century, due to recurring conflict between European and indigenous peoples, most notably the Pueblo Revolt.

Taos was formally established as a permanent settlement in 1795 by Nuevo México Governor Fernando Chacón, serving as a fortified plaza and trading outpost for the neighboring Taos Pueblo and Hispano communities, including Ranchos de Taos, Cañon, Taos Canyon, Ranchitos, El Prado, and Arroyo Seco. During the Mexican–American War, the region was occupied by the United States, triggering a rebellion among Hispanics and American Indians known as the Taos Revolt.

Following U.S. annexation of Nuevo México, Taos became a stopover for American and European settlers along the vast western frontier. During this period, the town developed its existing reputation as a cultural enclave, with the first artist colony being established in 1898 by painters Ernest Blumenschein and Bert Phillips. Taos has since developed a reputation as a "counterculture mecca" and "beacon for artists", attracting the likes of painter Georgia O’Keeffe, English poet and writer D.H. Lawrence, and actor Dennis Hopper.