Northern New Mexico in cultural terms usually refers to the area of heavy Spanish settlement in the north-central part of New Mexico, however, New Mexico state government also uses the term to mean the northwest and north central, but to exclude both the northeastern high plains counties and Sandoval County. The five largest cities in Northern New Mexico are: (1) Santa Fe; (2) Las Vegas; (3) Española; (4) Los Alamos; (5) Raton. - Source: Wikipedia