BASIC
INFORMATION
Full
Country Name: BRAZIL
Capital
Brasília
Largest
city São Paulo
Official language
Portuguese
Government
Federal republic
Area 8,514,877
km²
Population
- 2005 est. 186,405,000
Currency Real (BRL)
Time
zone (UTC-2 to -5 (Official:
-3))
Internet
TLD .br
Calling
code +55
|
|
GEOGRAPHY
& BACKGROUND
Brazil,
officially the Federative Republic of Brazil
(Portuguese: Brasil or República
Federativa do Brasil, listen (help·info)[1]),
is the largest and most populous country
in South America, and fifth largest in the
world in both area and population. Spanning
a vast area between central South America
and the Atlantic Ocean, it is the easternmost
country of the Americas and it borders Uruguay,
Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia,
Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and the French
department of French Guiana. In fact, it
borders every South American nation except
for Ecuador and Chile. The country's name
is generally believed to be derived from
pau-brasil (brazilwood), a tree highly valued
by early colonists, though some credit the
name to a mythical land mentioned in Europe
during Middle Ages. Brazil is home to both
extensive agricultural lands and rain forests.
Exploring vast natural resources and a large
labor pool, it is South America's leading
economic power and a regional leader. Because
it was a colony of Portugal, Portuguese
is Brazil's official language. Brazil has
the world's second largest Christian population
(151 million, behind that of the United
States), and also is the world's largest
Roman Catholic-majority nation in terms
of both number of adherents and land mass
— a strong cultural legacy left behind
by the Roman Catholic Portuguese colonists.
Brazil
is characterised by the extensive low-lying
Amazon Rainforest in the north and a more
open terrain of hills and low mountains
to the south — home to most of the
Brazilian population and its agricultural
base. Along the Atlantic seacoast are also
found several mountain ranges, reaching
roughly 2,900 metres (9,500 ft) high. The
highest peak is the Pico da Neblina(Myst's
Peak) reckoning 3,014 metres (9,735 ft)
of altitude, in Guiana's highlands. Major
rivers include the Amazon, the largest river
in the world in flowing water volume, and
the second-longest in the world; the Paraná
and its major tributary, the Iguaçu
River, where the impressive Iguaçu
falls are located; the Negro, São
Francisco, Xingu, Madeira and the Tapajós
rivers.
Located
mainly within the tropics, Brazil's climate
has little seasonal variation. In southern
most Brazil, however, there is subtropical
temperate weather, occasionally experiencing
frost and snow in the higher regions. Precipitation
is abundant in the humid Amazon Basin, but
more arid landscapes are found as well,
particularly in the northeast.
A
river in the Amazon RainforestA number of
islands in the Atlantic Ocean are part of
Brazil:
Saint
Peter and Paul Rocks
Rocas Atoll
Fernando de Noronha
Trindade and Martim Vaz
Mainland Brazil is commonly geographically
divided into 5 distinctive regions: North,
Northeast, Centre-West, Southeast and South.
The
North constitutes 45.27% of the surface
of Brazil and it is the region with the
lowest number of inhabitants. It is a fairly
unindustrialised and undeveloped region
(with the exception of Manaus, which hosts
a tax-free industrial zone). It accommodates
most of the largest rainforest of the world,
the Amazon, and many indigenous tribes.
The
Northeast has one third of Brazil's population.
The region is culturally diverse, with roots
from the Portuguese colonial period, Afro-Brazilian
culture and some Brazilian Indian influence.
It is also the poorest region of Brazil,
and has long periods of dry climate. It
is well-known for its beautiful coast.
FortalezaThe Central-West is the second
largest region of Brazil, but has a low
demographic density. It is there that the
Brazilian capital, Brasília, is located.
The region accommodates the Pantanal, the
world’s largest marshlands area, and
a small part of the Amazon rainforest, in
its northwestern area. However, much of
the region is overgrown by Cerrado, the
largest savanna in the world, which has
two distinct seasons: a rainy season (from
October to April) and a dry one (from May
to September). It is also the most important
area for agriculture in the country. The
most important cities are: Brasília,
Goiânia, Campo Grande and Cuiabá
The
Southeast is the richest and most densely
populated region. It has more inhabitants
than any other South American country, and
hosts one of the largest megalopoles of
the world, whereof the main cities are the
country's two biggest ones; São Paulo
and Rio de Janeiro. The region is very diverse,
including the major business centre of São
Paulo, the Historical cities of Minas Gerais,
the world famous beaches of Rio de Janeiro,
and the acclaimed coast of Espírito
Santo.
The
South is the wealthiest region (considering
GDP per capita), with the best standard
of living in the country. It is also the
coldest region of Brazil, with occasional
occurrences of frosts and snow in some of
the higher altitude regions. The region
has been heavily settled by European immigrants,
mainly of German, Italian, and Slavic genealogy,
and shows clear influences from these cultures.
For
more information please visit
http://www.fco.gov.uk/
or
visit
http://www.tripadvisor.com
