The Pico de Orizaba or Citlaltépetl (from Nahuatl citlal(in) = star, and tepētl = mountain), is a stratovolcano, the highest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North America, after Denali (formerly known as Mount McKinley) of the United States and Mount Logan of Canada. It rises 5,636 metres (18,491 ft) above sea level in the eastern end of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, on the border between the states of Veracruz and Puebla. The volcano is currently dormant but not extinct, with the last eruption taking place during the 19th century. It is the second most prominent volcanic peak in the world after Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro.
The Pico overlooks the valley and city of Orizaba, from which it gets its name. The name Citlaltépetl is not used by Nahuatl speakers of the Orizaba area, who instead call it Istaktepetl (Iztactépetl in the traditional orthography for Classical Nahuatl), or 'White Mountain'. In the earliest mention of the volcano, it was referred to by the natives during the Pre-Columbian Era as Poyautécatl, which means "the ground that reaches the clouds".