BASIC STATISTICS and FACTS about BRAZIL

BASIC STATISTICS AND FACTS

This is the numbers page. Includes basic demographic data and a list of states with assorted statistics. Also a list of major cities and rivers. Last, but not least, some economic stuff.

Land and Resources

The main physical features of Brazil are the Brazilian Highlands, a vast highland region in the southeast; the Amazon River Basin of impenetrable forested lowlands, swamps, and floodplains; and the Guiana Highlands in the extreme northwest. Much of the coast is fringed by a narrow plain. The Amazon River is navigable by oceangoing ships for 3700 km (2300 mi). Brazil's climate ranges from wet and tropical at the mouth of the Amazon to much drier and cooler in the southeast. Winter temperatures as low as -6° C (22° F) are occasionally recorded in the extreme south.

The plant life of Brazil is highly diversified, particularly in the Amazon Basin. Brazilian forests provide immense timber reserves and are a potential source for pharmaceutical products. Vegetation is less dense in the highlands, giving way to cacti and other spiny plants in dry sections of the plateau region; coniferous trees thrive in temperate areas.

Population

The population of Brazil is 167,660,687 (1997 estimate), 79 percent of which lives in urban areas. People of European descent, primarily Portuguese, account for 54 percent of the population; mulattoes and mestizos, with African-European and European-Native American ancestry, total 39 percent. People of African-Native American descent, Asian descent, and pure Native American descent form much smaller parts of the population.

Religion

Most Brazilians are Roman Catholics, with some combining worship of African deities with Christian religious practices. Native Americans generally follow traditional religions.

Culture

Portuguese is the official language of Brazil. Education is free and compulsory, and 83 percent of adults can read. The government provides support for higher education. Brazil is known for its music, which fuses African and Portuguese elements. The samba and the bossa nova originated in Brazil. The country also has a rich literature (see Brazilian Literature).

Basic Indicators

PEOPLE A mixture of people from many countries:
Italy, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Africans and native Indians.
SIZE 8,500,000 Square Kilometers (3,3000,000 square miles).
The largest nation in Latin America.
The fifth largest, after Russia, United States, Canada and China.
About the same area as Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay and Ecuador combined.
POPULATION 155,000,000 people. The sixth largest in the world.
About the same as Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and Venezuela.
LANGUAGE Portuguese, sixth most spoken language in the world.
More than French, German, Italian or Japanese.
CITIES Sao Paulo, 18 million people (3rd largest).
Rio de Janeiro, 12 million people (10th largest).
Brasilia, 1 million, Capital founded in 1960.
STATES 26 states, distributed among 5 geographic regions:
North, Northeast, Central-west, Southwest, and South.
National population density: 45 inhabitants per square mile.
Density in Amazon region: less than 2 inhabitants per square mile
NATURAL Gold, 2nd largest producer.
RESOURCES Manganese, Iron, Nickel and Uranium.
Precious Stones, 60% of world's supply.
HISTORY Discovered by the Portuguese in 1500 AD.
Named for Brazil wood (Pau Brasil) used for lumber.
Became Monarchy, independent from Portugal in 1822.
President Fernando Collor Mello impeached for corruption in 1992.
Current president is Itamar Franco.
ECONOMY GNP: $400 billion. Per capita income $2,130 year.
Minimum wage: $60 month. Inflation rate: 32% month, 1500% year
Currency: Cruzeiro Real (new name) Exchange rate: $1 = Cz$80

State Information Table

STATE	AREA	POPUL.	%PIB	DEPUTA
Acre	153.2	0.5	0.15	8
Alagoas	27.9	2.7	0.67	9
Amapa	143.5	0.3	0.09	8
Amazonas	1577.8	2.30	1.28	8
Bahia	567.3	12.6	4.49	39
Ceara	146.4	6.7	1.51	22
DF	5.8	1.7	1.36	8
Espirito Santo	46.2	2.80	1.94	10
Goias	341.3	4.3	2.12	17
Maranhao	333.4	5.20	1.23	18
Mato Grosso	906.8	2.30	0.59	8
M.G.Sul	358.2	1.9	1.79	8
Minas Gerais	588.4	16.50	12.53	53
Para	1253.1	5.5	1.32	17
Paraiba	56.6	3.3	0.65	12
Parana	199.7	8.7	6.11	30
Pernambuco	98.9	7.50	2.59	25
Piaui	252.4	2.7	0.39	10
Rio de Janeiro	43.9	13.30	12.52	46
Rio Grande do Norte	53.3	2.60	0.65	8
R.G. do Sul	282.1	9.60	6.59	31
Rondonia	238.5	1.4	0.29	8
Roraima	225.1	0.3	0.11	8
Santa Catarina	95.5	4.80	3.02	16
Sao Paulo	248.8	33.70	35.61	70
Sergipe	22.1	1.6	0.40	8
Tocantins	278.4	1	2.12	8
TOTAL	8544.6	155.8	102.12	513
21States???	Km2	millions	Int. Prod	Y1994

Additional Information

Location: Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean

Geographic coordinates: 10 00 S, 55 00 W

Map references: South America

Area:

total: 8,511,965 sq km
land: 8,456,510 sq km
water: 55,455 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo
Area-comparative: slightly smaller than the US Land boundaries:

total: 14,691 km
border countries: Argentina 1,224 km, Bolivia 3,400 km, Colombia 1,643 km, French Guiana 673 km, Guyana 1,119 km, Paraguay 1,290 km, Peru 1,560 km, Suriname 597 km, Uruguay 985 km, Venezuela 2,200 km
Coastline: 7,491 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mostly tropical, but temperate in south
Terrain: mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico da Neblina 3,014 m
Natural resources: bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber Land use:
arable land: 5%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 22%
forests and woodland: 58%
other: 14% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 28,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: recurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south Environment-current issues: deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers the existence of a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities
Environment-international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography-note: largest country in South America; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador
People
Population: 169,806,557 (July 1998 est.)
Note: Brazil took a census in August 1996 which showed a total of 157,079,573; this figure is about 5% lower than projections by the US Census Bureau, which is close to the implied underenumeration of 4.6% for 1991; since the full results of the census have not been released for analysis, the numbers shown for Brazil do not take into consideration the results of this 1996 census
Age structure:
0-14 years: 30% (male 26,090,859; female 25,132,122)
15-64 years: 65% (male 54,199,642; female 55,769,122)
65 years and over: 5% (male 3,499,272; female 5,115,540) (July 1998 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.24% (1998 est.)
Birth rate: 20.92 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate: 8.53 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female (1998 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 36.96 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 64.36 years
male: 59.39 years
female: 69.59 years (1998 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.33 children born/woman (1998 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Brazilian(s)
adjective: Brazilian
Ethnic groups: white (includes Portuguese, German, Italian, Spanish, Polish) 55%, mixed white and black 38%, black 6%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 1%
Religions: Roman Catholic (nominal) 70%
Languages: Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83.3%
male: 83.3%
female: 83.2% (1995 est.)