Minas Gerais

The title of this article is ambiguous. Further meanings are listed under Minas Gerais (disambiguation) .

Minas Gerais
Symbols
flag coat of arms
Basic data
Country	Brazil
Capital	Belo Horizonte
surface	586,519.7 km²
Residents	21,168,791 (estimate as of July 1, 2019)
density	36 inhabitants per km²
ISO 3166-2	BR-MG
politics
governor	Romeu Zema
Political party	NOVO
economy
GDP	576,199  million  R $ 27,283  R $ per capita (2017)
Capital Belo Horizonte

Coordinates: 18 °  S , 45 °  W

The federal state of Minas Gerais ( Brazilian-Portuguese [ ˈminɐz ʒeˈɾajs ], European-Portuguese [ ˈminɐʒ ʒɨˈɾajʃ ], abbreviation : MG ; German "general mines") is located in southeastern Brazil . Its capital is Belo Horizonte . In short, it is often just called Minas ; the residents are called "Mineiros".

geography

With around 586,520 km², Minas Gerais is roughly the size of metropolitan France and with 19,597,330 inhabitants according to the 2010 census of the IBGE (population density 33 inhabitants / km²), after São Paulo, it is the second most populous state in Brazil. As of July 1, 2019, the IBGE estimated the population to be 21,168,791.

Minas Gerais borders (clockwise from the southeast) with Rio de Janeiro , São Paulo , Mato Grosso do Sul , Goiás , Bahia and Espírito Santo ; a small part also borders the federal district .

The capital is Belo Horizonte . It was created at the end of the 19th century in place of the old capital Ouro Preto, which, however, symbolically receives this function back on high holidays. Other cities in Minas Gerais include Contagem , Uberlândia and Juiz de Fora .

The highest point is the Pico da Bandeira in the Serra do Caparaó with 2889 m. It is the third highest mountain in Brazil and lies on the border with the neighboring state of Espírito Santo . The most important rivers are São Francisco , Jequitinhonha, Doce, Grande, Paranaíba , Mucuri and Pardo.

Economy and Agriculture

The name of the state of Minas Gerais means something like "general mines". In fact, there are numerous mines and mining areas for various ores and phosphates . In particular, the " Iron Square " is rich in Precambrian iron ore deposits . There are aluminum and zinc produced. In Minas Gerais there are also large deposits of various minerals and rocks . The historical gold reserves that once established the state's wealth and power are now largely exhausted. Today, however, extensive diamond deposits are being exploited in the old gold mines .

In addition to gold and diamonds, numerous other minerals are mined. A total of around 670 minerals and their varieties have been found in the Minas Gerais area so far (as of 2011) . These include the beryl varieties emerald and aquamarine, known as gemstones, as well as jadeite , muscovite , rose quartz and spodumene , of which the gemstone variety Kunzite is known.

The area is also registered as a type locality for 35 minerals, including Brazilianite from the Córrego Frio Mine near Linópolis , Goyazite from Diamantina , Lindbergite from Sapucaia do Norte (Galiléia), Minasgeraisite- (Y) from the José Miranda Mine near Jaguaraçu , Palladium from Bom Sucesso Creek (Serro) and Tavorite from Sapucaia Mine (Sapucaia do Norte).

Among other things, dolomite and itacolumite are found on rocks .

The earth of Minas Gerais ( Terra Roxa ) is so ferrous that fine red laterite soil covers the highways and rivers turn reddish brown.

The diverse agriculture of Minas Gerais produces corn , soy , rice , beans and coffee , among other things . The cultivation of cotton is an important requirement for the local textile industry .

politics

See also : List of Governors of Minas Gerais

Romeu Zema des Partido Novo (NOVO) has been the governor with executive power since January 1, 2019 .

The legislature rests with 77 elected members of the Legislative Assembly of Minas Gerais .

The state sends 53 elected federal representatives to the Chamber of Deputies and three federal senators to the federal senate of the national congress .

History and culture

Around 1695 gold was found in Minas Gerais. When diamonds were also discovered, the region boomed. Slaves from Africa were brought here to work in the mines and numerous settlers and traders from Europe settled here.

In the state, the sauropod Maxakalisaurus topai was discovered, the largest of the 15 species of dinosaurs discovered in Brazil so far (as of 2006).

The state of Minas Gerais is responsible for the Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais, which is spread over six locations .

On November 5, 2015, an environmental disaster occurred in Minas Gerais when a retention basin of an iron ore mine broke near the town of Mariana . Toxic sludge got into the Rio Doce and into the Atlantic Ocean .

On January 25, 2019, a dam broke in Minas Gerais in the municipality of Brumadinho, causing a mudslide and widespread destruction. See: Brumadinho dam breach .

Cities

The ten largest parishes of the 853 municipal towns in Minas Gerais are according to the 2010 census:

 Map with all coordinates of the cities section : OSM

rank	local community	2010 census	July 1, 2018 estimate
001	Belo Horizonte	2,375,151	2,501,576
002	Uberlândia	604.013	683.247
003	Contagem	603,442	659.070
004th	Juiz de Fora	516.247	564.310
005	Betim	378.089	432,575
006th	Montes Claros	361.915	404.804
007th	Ribeirão das Neves	296.317	331.045
008th	Uberaba	295,988	330,361
009	Governador Valadares	263,689	278,685
010	Ipatinga	239,468	261,344

See also : List of municipalities in Minas Gerais

Population development

Population density of Minas Gerais.

0-25 Ew. / km²	25-50 inhabitants / km²	50-100 inhabitants / km²
100-150 inhabitants / km²	150-200 inhabitants / km²	200-300 inhabitants / km²
300-400 inhabitants / km²	400-500 inhabitants / km²	> 500 inhabitants / km²

year	Residents
1872	2,039,735
1890	3,184,099
1900	3,594,471
1920	5,888,174
1940	6,763,368
1950	7,782,188
1960	9,960,040
1970	11,645,095
1980	13,651,852
1991	15,731,961
2000	17,866,402
2010	19,597,330
2019	21,168,791

Ethnic groups

Ethnic groups according to the statistical classification of the IBGE statistical office (2000 status with 17,866,402 inhabitants, status 2010 with 19,597,330 inhabitants): Of these, 14,658,502 inhabitants lived in urban areas (81.87%) and 3,246,631 in rural areas in 2010 Area (18.13)%, in 2010 there were 16,714,976 inhabitants in urban areas (85.29%) and 2,882,354 in rural areas (14.71%).

For the first time in the 2010 census, the Afro-Brazilian population of Pardos and Pretos exceeded that of the whites. The indigenous population is made up of members of the Xacriabá , Maxakali , Krenak , Pataxó , Kaxixó , Aranã , Mukurim , Pankararu and Xukuru-Kariri ethnic groups .

group	Share 2000	%	Share 2010	%	annotation
Brancos	9,594,370	53.58	▼ 8,830,978	45.06	Whites, descendants of Europeans
Pardos	6,737,420	37.63	▲ 8,736,860	44.58	Mixed races, mulattos , mestizos
Pretus	1,397,199	7.80	▲ 1,807,526	9.22	black
Amarelos	28,563	0.16	▲ 187,869	0.96	Asians
Indigenous people	48,720	0.27	▼ 31.601	0.16	indigenous population
without specification	98,862	0.55	2,496	0.01

literature

• Heinrich Gutersohn : The heartland of Minas Gerais. A contribution to the cultural geography of Brazil. In: Mitteilungen der Geographisch-Ethnographische Gesellschaft Zürich, 42 (1943–1944), pp. 52–112.

Web links

Commons : Minas Gerais  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Government website , Governo do Estado de Minas Gerais (Brazilian Portuguese)
• Legislative Assembly website , Assembleia Legislativa do Estado de Minas Gerais (Brazilian Portuguese)
• Minas Gerais - Panorama. In: cidades.ibge.gov.br. IBGE (Brazilian Portuguese, updated statistics). 
• Minas Gerais. In: cidades.ibge.gov.br. IBGE (Brazilian Portuguese, basic statistical information). 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Minas Gerais - Panorama. In: cidades.ibge.gov.br. IBGE , accessed September 4, 2019 (Brazilian Portuguese). 
2. ↑ Jolyon Ralph, Ida Ralph: English-language mineral list for the Minas Gerais site on mindat.org. The type localities appear in bold.
3. ^ Humberto Trajano, Raquel Freitas: Romeu Zema, do Novo, é eleito governador de Minas Gerais. In: globo.com. G1, October 28, 2018, accessed January 27, 2019 (Brazilian Portuguese). 
4. ^ Carla Rahn Philipps: Trade in the Iberian empires, 1450-1750. In: Douglas A. Irwin (Ed.) Trade in the pre-modern era, 1400–1700 , pp. 330–331.
5. ↑ Anne Herrberg: A lifeline that has become muddy brown . Environmental disaster in Brazil. In: tagesschau. ARD, November 27, 2015, accessed on December 2, 2015 . 
6. ↑ IBGE : Sistema IBGE de Recuperação Automática - SIDRA: Tabela 2093. Retrieved April 8, 2020 (Portuguese, database query, search terms Minas Gerais and Cor ou raça).