Archive for 'Geography'
Naturalidades: Part IV Posted by Transparent Language on May 4, 2008
In the fourth part of the series on naturalidades, where a person is from in Brazil, we’ll take a look at the Southeast/South central region. A person from the state of São Paulo is called paulista, and a person from the capital city, also São Paulo, is called paulistano. A person from the state of…
Naturalidades: Part III Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 27, 2008
To continue with our lesson on naturalidades, where a person is from in Brazil, let’s look at the Southern region. A person from the state of Paraná is called paranaense, and a person from the capital of Curitiba is called curitibano. A person from the state of Santa Catarina is called catarinense or barriga-verde…
Naturalidades: Part II Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 22, 2008
Today, we’ll take a look at round two of naturalidades, which describe exactly where a person is from in Brazil, based on the city or state. These are important to learn because although Brazilians are quite patriotic, they tend to identify most with the city they grew up in, and introduce themselves as Americans would…
Naturalidades: Part I Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 16, 2008
“Naturalidade” means where someone is from in Brazil, either referring to the state or city of origin. Just as we would refer to people from New York City as “New Yorkers” and people from Texas as “Texans,” Brazilians define people by exactly where they’re from. Note that naturalidades are written in lower case letters. Let’s…
Brazilian City Spotlight: Tupandi, Rio Grande do Sul Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 15, 2008
With only 59 square kilometers and 3,600 residents, the tiny town of Tupandi would at first glance appear to be like any other town in Brazil’s southernmost state. But thanks to a plan to diversify agriculture instead of relying on the traditional textile industry, the town now has one of the highest GDPs per capita…
Brazilian City Spotlight: São Félix do Xingu Posted by Transparent Language on Apr 1, 2008
The municipality of São Félix de Xingu, population 60,000, is located in the northern state of Pará. Despite its modest population size, the city extends over 84,600 square kilometers, a space fifty-six times larger that the city of São Paulo, where ten million people live. For this reason, it’s the second largest municipality in Brazil…
Brazilian City Spotlight: Petrópolis, the Imperial City Posted by Transparent Language on Mar 26, 2008
Located an hour from the city of Rio de Janeiro, Petrópolis is a city nestled in the mountains of the Serra dos Órgãos, with a population of about 306,000. The city was the summer home of the Brazilian emperor, Dom Pedro II, who founded the city in 1843 after buying a farm in the area…