BRAZIL Overview of Brazil 1: Where is Brazil? If you look at the world map, you can find Brazil in the Continent of South America. Borders of the country touch all the countries of the continent except Chile and Ecuador. Brazil is the largest country in South America and fifth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada, China and United States. When you look at the world’s map, Brazil is easy to recognize, as its shape makes you to think of a heart. It faces the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Africa and North America. Its size, relief, climate, and natural resources make Brazil geographically diverse. Brazil is the only country in the world that lies on the equator while having contiguous territory outside the tropics. People from across the world, be that of any region, culture, religion, ethnic background visit Brazil. 1 BRAZIL 2 BRAZIL Why the country is called “ Brazil”? The word “ Brazil” originates from a tree that once grew in abundance in Brazilian coast. The color of this tree, Brazilwood or “ Pau-brasil”, was red like an ember . The tree was used to produce a deep red dye, so it was extensively used in cloth industry. It was said that during the 16th century, massive amount of the tree was harvested by the local people and they used to trade this wood with the Portuguese and French merchants. The wood has also been used to produce red ink and the best quality 3 BRAZIL musical instruments such as violins and cellos are made of Brazilwood. Unfortunately, over use of the trees led to decrease in tree production during the 18th Century. This tree is now considered endangered and its trade has now been banned in Brazil. It is interesting to note that Brazil was also called by early sailors as “ Land of Parrots”. How large is Brazil? Brazil is the largest Latin American country, occupying an area of 3,286,470 sq. miles (8,511,965sq. km) and covering nearly half of the South American landmass. It is the fifth largest country in the world after the Russian Federation, Canada, China and the United States. It is thirty five times the size of the United Kingdom and more than ten times the size of Pakistan. The distance from north to south and from east to west is nearly as far as the distance from London to New York. The capital city of Brazil is Brasília. Brazil consists of five regions and is divided into 26 states and a Federal District. The state of Amazonas has the largest area and the most 4 BRAZIL populous one is São Paulo. Brasilia is a planned city, built in the late 1950s in the Goiás´ plateaus. Now, millions of people reside in the Federal District. Two of the world's fifteen largest cities are in Brazil: São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. What is the History of Brazil? Colonial Brazil The Portuguese discovered Brazil by accident. Pedro Alvares Cabral landed on 21st April 1500. 5 BRAZIL At first, the Portuguese showed little interest in Brazil and merchants only set up coastal trading stations and exported brazil wood. When they realized that the French also began to trade with the Brazilian Indigenous people, the Portuguese decided to found a colony to guarantee the land. So, in 1530 men were led by Martim Alfonso de Sousa and made the first settlement at Sao Vicente. Later, in 1532, the King of Portugal divided the coast of Brazil into 15 huge areas and gave them to Portuguese noblemen on condition they encouraged settlers to Brazil. Nevertheless there were few settlers in Brazil over the next few years. So, in 1549 the King ended the division and made Salvador the country's capital. A governor-general called Tome de Sousa was appointed. Brazil began to grow as a colony when sugar was introduced in the late-16th century. The plantations were worked by African slaves. In the early 17th century the Brazilian sugar industry boomed. Brazil became Europe's main supplier of sugar. 6 BRAZIL In the late 17th century the sugar industry in Brazil became less important, and, in 1695, gold was discovered. The discovery of gold led many people to settle in the interior of Brazil and the population shifted. As a result the capital was moved to Rio de Janeiro in 1763. Then in 1807 a momentous event happened. In Europe, Napoleon invaded Portugal, and that made in 1808 the King of Portugal and his court flee to Brazil. Rio de Janeiro then became the capital of the Portuguese Empire, its population grew rapidly, new public buildings were erected and new theatres and libraries were built. Then in 1820 the king returned to Portugal, leaving his son Dom Pedro as regent in Brazil. In October 1821 Dom Pedro was recalled to Portugal but the Brazilians persuaded him to stay. On 7 September 1822 he broke with Portugal and declared Brazil independent. The Monarchy In Brazil However Dom Pedro's reign as emperor of Brazil was short, he went back to Portugal and 7 BRAZIL abdicated in 1831, in favour of his 5 year old son, Dom Pedro II. As his son was only a child, Brazil was led by a regency, and a period of instability followed. Dom Pedro II was crowned in 1840. Even though he was only 14, he soon proved to be capable ruler and restored order in the country. During his rule, Brazil experienced a coffee boom. From 1830 to 1964 coffee was Brazil's main export. In the 1870s and 1880s a network of railways was built across Brazil, which made it easier to transport coffee to the ports for export. The prosperity of the country made many Europeans immigrate to Brazil, and there was a huge surge of immigrants after the 1870s. Among them were many Italians, Germans and Portuguese. There were also many Japanese immigrants. The 1870s also saw the arrival of republicanism in the country, and in 1889 the monarchy was overthrown and Brazil became a Republic. 8 BRAZIL Early 20th Century Brazil Brazil continued to be prosperous in the early 20th century, until the 1930s, when the whole world was gripped by depression. After a Revolution, in 1930, Getúlio Vargas became the President of Brazil, position which he held until 1945. During that period, many policies were created in order to modernize the country, such as the creation of labour laws and the installation of basic industries. In 1945 elections for the presidency were held and won by Eurico Gaspar Dutra. Getúlio Vargas won the next elections, in 1950. This time, his rule was troubled by economic and social problems, and he ended up committing suicide in 1954. New elections were held and won by Juscelino Kubitschek, who built the new capital at Brasilia and attracted many automobile industries to the country. Juscelino was followed by Janio Quadros, who resigned after 7 months and was succeeded by Joao Goulart, the Vice-President. However, in 1964 the army 9 BRAZIL took profit of social instability and economic troubles and staged a coup. All political parties except two were banned and trade unions were suppressed. The media was strictly controlled. This situation lasted almost 15 years. In the early 1980s the army ended censorship in Brazil and allowed political parties to form. In 1985, the National Assembly elected a man named Tancredo Neves as President, beginning the democratic period that lasts until the current days. How does Brazil look like? From the Amazon basin in the north and west to the Brazilian Highlands in the southeast, Brazil's topography is quite diverse. It has beautiful beaches and coastal plains alongside the Atlantic Ocean. The most extensive lowland is the Amazon Basin. There are highlands where Numerous archipelagos ( islands) form part of Brazilian territory, such as Fernando de Noronha, Rocas Atoll, Saint Peter and Paul Rocks, and Trindade and Martim Vaz. The life above and below sea is the main attraction of the island. Sea tortoises, 10 BRAZIL dolphins, albatrosses and many other species are frequently observed. How's the Weather in Brazil? Almost all of Brazil is humid as well as either has a tropical or subtropical climate. Brazil's rainy season occurs during the summer months. Eastern Brazil suffers from regular drought. There is little seismic or volcanic activity due to Brazil's position near the center of the South American Plateau. 11 BRAZIL Natural Resources in Brazil Brazilian Natural Resources have always been the prime attraction to the colonizers of Brazil. In the beginning of colonial times, Brazil was colonized by France and Netherlands in search of it's natural resources. But the Portuguese were the prime colonizers of Brazil who always searched for gold and silver in the region. It was the private explorers who named themselves Bandeirantes who found gold and silver in the state of Minas Gerais. The agricultural land of Brazil has always been quite fertile producing sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, soybean in abundance. Owing to the Brazil natural resources, Brazil is one of the 12 BRAZIL 13 BRAZIL leading exporters in the world. These resources have helped a lot in the enhancement of financial status of the country. These natural resources mainly include: Iron Ore, Manganese, Bauxite, Nickel, Granite, Limestone, Clay,Sand, Tin, Gold, Platinum, Uranium Gems, Petroleum, Phosphates, and Timber. From these natural resources major industries have been developed and by involving with those business many of the Brazilians are making their livelihood. Some of the major industries that developed out of these natural resources are: Iron and Steel, Chemicals, Consumer Goods, plastics, Shipbuilding, Machinery, Vehicles, Metal Products, Fertilizer, Foodstuffs, Textiles, Clothing, P a p e r P r o d u c t s , P e t r o c h e m i c a l s , Pharmaceuticals, Cement, Wood Products.