Acre

AC

164123040

49.5

1.92

It is located in the southwest of the North region and has the limits of Amazonas to the north, Rondonia to the east, Bolivia to the southeast and Peru to the south and west. Most of Acre is formed by untouchable forest, protected mainly by the establishment of fully protected forests, indigenous reserves and extractive reserves.Until 1903, the region of Acre was disputed by Brazil, Bolivia and Peru, when then Brazil bought this region from the Bolivians for 2 million pounds sterling, ending the dispute. Acre only started to be considered a Brazilian state in 1962, when it reached the necessary development.Acre's economy is based on extractivism (collections of what nature offers, without the concern of cultivating such resources). Acre, due to its great concerns with the exploration of the Amazon, received in 2002 the most important forest certification in the world, the �green seal�, for making wood withdrawals causing the least possible aggression to nature, in the Xapiru region. The state is the largest Brazilian rubber producer and the service sector stands out from the economy. The main means of transport is by rivers.

Alagoas

AL

27778506

202.1

0.33

Alagoas is located to the east of the Northeast region, with the limits of Pernambuco to the north and northwest, Sergipe to the south, Bahia to the southwest and Atlantic Ocean to the east. Currently, the fastest growing economic activity in the state is tourism, the capital Macei� being one of the most visited in the northeast region. Other activities that play an important role in the economy of Alagoas are: Agriculture: cultivation of products such as pineapple, coconut, sugar cane, beans, tobacco, cassava, rice and corn. Livestock: Equine, cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep and pig breeding. Extraction: rock salt mineral reserves, natural gas, in addition to oil. Industry: sugar and alcohol production, cement and food processing. For a long time, agriculture was the main activity of the Alagoas economy, but today it represents only 10.3% of it. This reduction occurred because the government in the 1960s started to diversify investments, investing in rock salt exploration and oil production.

Amapa

AP

142828521

69.3

1.68

It is located to the northeast of the North region and is bordered by French Guiana to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Para to the south and west and Suriname to the northwest. It is the best preserved Brazilian state, keeping almost the entire Amazonian forest intact, which covers 90% of its territory. The state has an urban population of 89%, second only to S�o Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and the Federal District. The economy of Amapa has little participation in the national GDP and is basically concentrated in the extraction of Brazil nuts, wood and manganese mining. The state is one of the largest buyers of products from Para, a state to which it is closely linked. Macapa and Amapa consume food and other products mainly from the Maraj� region (Para).

Amazonas

AM

1559159148

395.1

18.31

Amazonas is the most extensive of the federative units in Brazil. Its limits are Venezuela and Roraima to the north, Para to the east, Mato Grosso to the southeast, Rond�nia to the south, Acre to the southwest, Peru to the west and Colombia to the northwest. A quarter of all Brazilians live in the Amazon and their culture has strong indigenous and northeastern influences. The state's economy is based on industry, mining, mining and fishing. In relation to extractivism, a great boost in economic life and in the colonization of the Amazon region was given by the exploration of latex, during the rubber cycle. Amazonas is the only Brazilian state that has industry as the focus of the economy. In 1967, the Manaus Free Trade Zone was created to stimulate the development of the industry through tax incentives. Thus, between 1965 and 1975, the state's annual income grew 147%. Most of the transport of people and cargo is done by the Madeira, Negro and Amazonas rivers.

Bahia

BA

564733177

762.9

6.63

Bahia is the most populous state in the Northeast region. It is located to the south of this region and borders eight states: Alagoas, Sergipe, Pernambuco and Piau� to the north, Minas Gerais and Esp�rito Santo to the south, Goias and Tocantins to the west. To the east, it borders the Atlantic Ocean. Therefore, Bahia is the state that most borders on other units of the federation. It has an important petrochemical industry and has the most extensive coastline in Brazil, in addition to the highest concentration of relative numbers of blacks and mulattos in Brazil. It has great influence of African culture: the music, cuisine, religion and the way of life of its population make a great contribution from African slaves. In the economy, Bahia is the sixth Brazilian state in wealth, making more than half of exports from the Northeast. The state's economy is based on industry (chemical, petrochemical, computer and automobile), agriculture (cassava, beans, cocoa and coconut), mining, tourism and services.

Ceara

CE

148920472

471.2

1.74

Ceara is located in the northeast region, with the Atlantic Ocean to the north and northeast, Rio Grande do Norte and Para�ba to the east, Pernambuco to the south and Piau� to the west. It is a state that has great tourist potential, serving the most diverse types of tourism, such as cultural, religious, rural, adventure and ecotourism. In addition, livestock (cattle, pigs, goats, horses, birds, donkeys, shrimp and sheep) stands out in the economy of Ceara. In Agriculture, the cultivation of beans, corn, rice, cotton, cashew nuts, sugar cane, cassava, castor, tomatoes, bananas, oranges, among others, stands out. In Ceara is located the Industrial District of Maracana�, in the Metropolitan Region of Fortaleza, which is an important industrial complex in the state. The Ceara industry operates in the areas of clothing, food, metallurgy, textiles, chemicals and footwear.

Distrito Federal

DF

5779999

621.2

0.07

In the Federal District is located the capital of the country, Brasilia, founded on April 21, 1960. Until the creation of Brasilia, the Federal Capital was the city of Rio de Janeiro. The Federal District is the smallest autonomous territory in Brazil and, due to constitutional limitations, cannot be divided into municipalities. It is formed by the capital Bras�lia and several administrative regions (RAs), such as Gama, Ceil�ndia, Sobradinho, Guara etc. The state does not have any type of subordination in relation to its neighbor, Goias. Although the Federal District has no capital, we have the city of Bras�lia (Federal Capital of the Federative Republic of Brazil) as the seat of its government.

Espirito Santo

ES

46095583

427.6

0.54

The limits of Espirito Santo are the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Bahia to the north, Minas Gerais to the west and northwest and the state of Rio de Janeiro to the south. Every person born in the state is known as Capixaba or Espiritossantense. In 1535, when the Portuguese colonizers arrived at the Captaincy of Esp�rito Santo and landed in the Prainha region, the first population nucleus, called Vila do Esp�rito Santo, began. Due to indigenous attacks, leader Vasco Fernandes Coutinho decided to found another village, this time on one of the islands, which was called Vila Nova do Esp�rito Santo (Vit�ria), while the old one was renamed Vila Velha. There was a time, known to few, when Esp�rito Santo was annexed to Bahia, therefore having Salvador as its capital. Currently, the capital Vit�ria is an important export port for iron ore. In agriculture, coffee, rice, cocoa, sugar cane, beans, fruits and corn stand out. In livestock, beef and dairy cattle. In the industry, food products, wood, cellulose, textiles, furniture and steel.

Goias

GO

340111783

1113.6

3.99

It is the most populous in the Midwest and the most central of the Brazilian states. Goias is part of the Central plateau, being made up of flat lands whose altitude varies between 200 and 1200 meters. The predominant vegetation is the cerrado. Goias' economy is based on industry (mining, food, pharmaceutical, clothing, furniture, metallurgy, timber), commerce, livestock and agriculture. It is one of the largest soy and corn producers in the country. Through tax incentives and the formation of clusters (a group of companies in the same sector seeking benefits), the state has been attracting more and more investments in the industrial sector. It is already among the largest producers of generic drugs in the country. The capital, Goi�nia, concentrates 1 million inhabitants and the main manufacturing industries in the state.

Maranhao

MA

331937450

512.3

3.9

It is located in the west of the Northeast region, having as limits the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Piaui to the east, Tocantins to the south and southwest and Para to the west. It is the only state in the region with part of its area covered by the Amazon rainforest, presenting important areas of environmental protection. In 1997, the capital S�o Luis was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Maranh�o's economy is based on industry (transformation of aluminum), services, extraction, agriculture (soy, cassava, rice, corn) and livestock. There are several theories for the origin of the state's name. However, the most accepted is that Maranh�o was the name given to the Amazon River by the natives of the region before European navigators arrived. Maranh�o also stands out in tourism (ecological, cultural, religious), presenting visitors with a mix of ecosystems only compared, in Brazil, with that of the Pantanal Mato-Grossense. It has the 2nd largest Brazilian coast, surpassed only by Bahia.

Mato Grosso

MT

903366192

519.7

10.61

It is the country's third largest state in area. It is located west of the Midwest region. Most of its territory is occupied by the Legal Amazon. Its limits are Amazonas and Para to the north; Tocantins and Goias to the east; Mato Grosso do Sul to the south; Rond�nia and Bolivia to the west. Its economy is based on agriculture, livestock, mining and industry. Mato Grosso is one of the main soybean producers and exporters in Brazil.

Mato Grosso do Sul

MS

357145532

441.3

4.19

The lands where today the state of Mato Grosso do Sul is located began to be populated in 1830. The state constituted the southern part of the state of Mato Grosso, from which it was separated by a complementary law from 1977. Part of the old state was located within of the legal Amazon, whose area extended further south, in order to benefit from its tax incentives to the new federation unit. The state's economy is based on agriculture, livestock, mining and industry. The main economic area of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul is the plateau of the Parana basin, with its forest and purple soil. In this region, means of transport are more efficient and consumer markets in the Southeast are closer

Minas Gerais

MG

586522122

2525.8

6.89

It is the second most populous state in Brazil. The capital, Belo Horizonte alone, has around five million inhabitants in its metropolitan region. It is located in the southeast region and its limits are S�o Paulo to the south and southwest, Mato Grosso do Sul to the west, Goias to the northwest (in addition to a small border with the Federal District), Esp�rito Santo to the east, Rio de Janeiro to the southeast and Bahia to the north and northeast. Minas Gerais is the third richest state in the country, behind S�o Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. In the economy, agriculture can be mentioned, with the production of coffee, sugarcane, soy, corn, pineapple, beans and bananas; and livestock, with beef cattle, swine, poultry and milk production. The industrial and service sectors are balanced in the state economy. The state has the third largest industrial park in the country and highlights the mining, metallurgical, automotive, food, textile, civil construction, chemical products and non-metallic minerals industry.

Para

PA

1247954666

730.6

14.65

It is the second largest state in Brazil, second only to Amazonas. It is located in the center of the North region, with the limits of Suriname and Amapa to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the northeast, Maranh�o to the east, Tocantins to the southeast, Mato Grosso to the south and Amazonas to the west and Roraima and Guyana to the northwest . Para began to be colonized by the Portuguese in 1616. From the Forte do Pres_pio, in Guajara Bay, in front of the island of Maraj�, the city of Bel_m is born, the current state capital. The economy is based on mining and agribusiness, with aluminum and iron ore as the main export products. The state also leads the extraction of wood and palm hearts in the country. In addition, with the recent expansion of demand for soybean culture throughout the national territory, the southwestern region of Para has become a new area for the proliferation of this activity, along the Santar_m-Cuiaba highway.

Paraiba

PB

56585000

319.6

0.66

It is located to the east of the Northeast, with the limits of Rio Grande do Norte to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Pernambuco to the south and Ceara to the west. The state's economy is based on agriculture (sugar cane, pineapple, cassava, etc.), industry (food, textiles, sugar and alcohol), livestock and tourism.

Parana

PR

199307922

16037

2.34

It is located in the South region and its limits are Sao Paulo to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Santa Catarina to the south, Argentina to the southwest, Paraguay to the west and Mato Grosso do Sul to the northwest. It houses what remains of the araucaria forest and its predominant humid subtropical climate. Parana has a highly diversified and highly productive agricultural sector, in addition to a growing industrial sector. It is the largest national producer of corn and the second largest in sugarcane and soy. The rivers in the Parana River Hydrographic Basin drain almost the entire state. The main water courses are, in addition to the Parana River itself, Paranapanema, Igua�u and Iva�.

Pernambuco

PE

98311616

622.3

1.15

It is located in the center-east of the Northeast, with Paraiba and Ceara to the northwest, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Alagoas and Bahia to the south and Piau� to the west. Despite being one of the smallest Brazilian states, Pernambuco is one of the largest tourist centers in the country. The economy also includes industry, agriculture, livestock and livestock, although Pernambuco has ceased to be an agricultural state to become a major center of services, with emphasis on trade and tourism. Pernambuco has several landscapes, such as mountains, plateaus, swamps, in addition to some of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil on its coast. The state has predominantly high temperatures, although the climate is quite diverse due to the interference of the relief and air masses. The true origin of the name Pernambuco is unknown. However, the most accepted version is that the name comes from the Tupi Paran�-Puca, which means "where the sea breaks", since most of the state's coast is protected by walls of coral reefs.

Piaui

PI

251577738

277.1

2.95

It is located to the northwest of the Northeast region, having as limits the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Ceara and Pernambuco to the east, Bahia to the south and southeast, Tocantins to the southwest and Maranhao to the west and northwest. The Piaui region only started to be populated in the 17th century, when the cowherds, mainly from Bahia, arrived looking for pastures. Its ecosystem is similar to that of the Amazon, with a large number of islands, lagoons, streams and others. The state's economy is based on the service sector, industry (chemicals, textiles and beverages), extensive livestock and agriculture (rice, cotton, sugar cane, cassava, soy). In the north of the state, tourism is highlighted on the coast, in the municipalities of Parnaiba and Luis Correia, as well as in national parks, most of them located in the south of the state.

Rio Grande do Norte

RN

52811047

269.6

0.62

It is located in the Northeast Region, having as limits the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east, Paraiba to the south and Ceara to the west. The inhabitants or natives of Rio Grande do Norte are designated by the gentilico "potiguar" or "norte-rio-grandense". Potiguar was the name of a Tupi nation that inhabited the coastal region where the state is located today. The economy of Rio Grande do Norte is booming, based on commerce, the textile industry, agribusiness and tourism, thanks to a coastline of 410 km of beaches. Although Bahia has the longest coastline among Brazilian states, Rio Grande do Norte is the one with the highest projection for the Atlantic, as it is located in a region where the Brazilian coastline makes an acute angle, the so-called "corner of Brazil". The state is the largest Brazilian crustacean exporter, along with Ceara. It also has great potential for mineral salt and terrestrial oil. In agriculture, the highlight is carcinoculture, irrigated fruit culture (pineapple, banana, melon and coco-da-bay, among others) and livestock.

Rio Grande do Sul

RS

281730223

1647

3.31

Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state in the country, is the largest and most populous state in the southern region. Its limits are Santa Catarina to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Uruguay to the south and Argentina to the west. It is the fourth richest state in the country, second only to S�o Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro. It is also the fifth most populous and the third in terms of HDI (human development index). Its economy is based on agriculture, livestock and industry (food, textile, leather and footwear, timber, metallurgy and chemistry). In addition, Rio Grande do Sul has several tourism options. The north coast beaches, such as Cap�o da Canoa, Tramanda� and Torres are the best known in the state. The mountainous regions also attract thousands of tourists, mainly in winter and summer. The cities of Gramado and Canela are famous for the decorations they make at Christmas parties.