Ocotlán de Morelos is a town and municipality in the state of Oaxaca, about 35 km south of the center of the city of Oaxaca along Highway 175. It is part of the Ocotlán District in the south of the Valles Centrales Region. The area was a significant population center at the time of the Spanish Conquest, and for that reason an important Dominican monastery was established here in the 16th century. The complex still exists, with the church still being used for worship and the cloister area used as a museum. While mostly quiet, the city is an important distribution and transportation center for the south of the Central Valleys region of Oaxaca, a function which is expected to be reinforced with the opening of new highway being built to connect the city of Oaxaca with the Pacific coast. The city is known for artist Rodolfo Morales, who painted aspects of his hometown in his works and sponsored projects to save and restore historic monuments here. For generations the municipality has been known for its crafts, with the ceramics making Aguilar family producing some of the best known craftsmen.

Oaxaca is a state in Southwest Mexico that is divided into 570 municipalities, more than any other state in Mexico. According to Article 113 of the state's constitution, the municipalities are grouped into 30 judicial and tax districts to facilitate the distribution of the state's revenues. It is the only state in Mexico with this particular judicial and tax district organization. Oaxaca is the tenth most populated state with 4,132,148 inhabitants as of the 2020 Mexican census and the fifth largest by land area spanning 93,757.6 square kilometres (36,200.0 sq mi).