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Portal:Brazil

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Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest and easternmost country in South America and Latin America. Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area and the seventh most populous. Its capital is Brasília, and its most populous city is São Paulo. Brazil is a federation composed of 26 states and a Federal District. It is the only country in the Americas where Portuguese is an official language. Brazil is among the world's most multicultural and ethnically diverse nations, due to over a century of mass immigration from around the world.

Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, Brazil has a coastline of 7,491 kilometers (4,655 mi). Covering roughly half of South America's land area, it borders all other countries and territories on the continent except Ecuador and Chile. Brazil's Amazon basin includes a vast tropical forest home to diverse wildlife, a variety of ecological systems, and extensive natural resources spanning numerous protected habitats. This unique environmental heritage positions Brazil at number one of 17 megadiverse countries. The country's natural richness is also the subject of significant global interest, as environmental degradation (through processes such as deforestation) has direct impacts on global issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss.

The territory of present-day Brazil was inhabited by numerous tribal nations prior to the landing of explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral in 1500. Subsequently claimed by the Portuguese Empire, Brazil remained a Portuguese colony until 1808, when the capital of the empire was transferred from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro. In 1815, the colony was elevated to the rank of kingdom upon the formation of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Independence was achieved in 1822 with the creation of the Empire of Brazil, a unitary state governed under a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary system. The ratification of the first constitution in 1824 led to the formation of a bicameral legislature, now called the National Congress. Slavery was abolished in 1888. The country became a presidential republic in 1889 following a military coup d'état. An authoritarian military dictatorship emerged in 1964 and ruled until 1985, after which civilian governance resumed. Brazil's current constitution, formulated in 1988, defines it as a democratic federal republic. Due to its rich culture and history, the country ranks thirteenth in the world by number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Brazil is a regional and middle power that is an emerging power and a major non-NATO ally of the United States. Categorized as a developing country with a high Human Development Index, Brazil is considered an advanced emerging economy, having the eighth largest GDP in the world in both nominal and PPP terms—the largest in Latin America and the Southern Hemisphere. Classified as an upper-middle income economy by the World Bank, and a newly industrialized country by the IMF, Brazil has the largest share of wealth and the most complex economy in South America. It is also one of the world's major breadbaskets, being the largest producer of coffee for the last 150 years. Despite its growing economic and global profile, the country continues to face high levels of corruption, crime and social inequality. Brazil is a founding member of the United Nations, the G20, BRICS, G4, Mercosul, Organization of American States, Organization of Ibero-American States and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries. Brazil is also an observer state of the Arab League. (Full article...)

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Rio de Janeiro (Portuguese: [ˈʁi.u d(ʒi) ʒɐˈne(j)ɾu] ), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the sixth-most-populous city in the Americas.

Founded in 1565 by the Portuguese, the city was initially the seat of the Captaincy of Rio de Janeiro, a domain of the Portuguese Empire. In 1763, it became the capital of the State of Brazil, a state of the Portuguese Empire. In 1808, when the Portuguese Royal Court moved to Brazil, Rio de Janeiro became the seat of the court of Queen Maria I of Portugal. She subsequently, under the leadership of her son the prince regent John VI of Portugal, raised Brazil to the dignity of a kingdom, within the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil, and Algarves. Rio remained as the capital of the pluricontinental monarchy until 1822, when the Brazilian War of Independence began. This is one of the few instances in history that the capital of a colonizing country officially shifted to a city in one of its colonies. Rio de Janeiro subsequently served as the capital of the independent monarchy, the Empire of Brazil, until 1889, and then the capital of a republican Brazil until 1960 when the capital was transferred to Brasília. (Full article...)
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Rennotte ca. 1900–1910

Marie Rennotte (11 February 1852 – 21 November 1942) was a Belgian-born Brazilian physician, teacher, and women's rights activist. She was active in the fight for women's rights. After earning her teaching credentials in Belgium and France, Rennotte taught for three years in Germany before moving to Brazil as a governess. Giving private lessons and teaching at a girls' school, she lived in Rio de Janeiro from 1878 to 1882. Hired to teach in the State of São Paulo, she moved to Piracicaba where from 1882 to 1889 she taught science, developed the curriculum, and enhanced the reputation of the Colégio Piracicabano [pt]. The co-educational school was an innovative institution offering equal education to girls and boys.

In 1889, on a scholarship provided by the State of São Paulo, Rennotte enrolled in medical school at the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. That year, she was granted citizenship when a legal change allowed all foreigners permanently living in Brazil to become naturalized. Graduating in 1892, she studied at the Paris Hôtel-Dieu Hospital between 1893 and 1895, completing a specialization in obstetrics and gynaecology. Upon her return to Brazil, she defended her thesis to a jury from the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of the University of Rio de Janeiro, validating her degree and allowing her to practice medicine in the country. From 1895 to 1899, Rennotte directed the obstetrics and maternity unit of the Maternity Hospital of São Paulo [pt]. She attended patients in the hospital as well as in private homes where she helped to deliver babies. Opening her own practice after she resigned from the Maternity Hospital, she operated a dispensary for the poor and immigrant communities, while continuing to see paying patients. (Full article...)

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Roberto Carlos in 2018
Roberto Carlos Braga (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁoˈbɛʁtu ˈkaʁlus]; born April 19, 1941) is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, also known as "King of Latin Music" or simply "the King". Most of his songs were written in partnership with his friend, singer and songwriter Erasmo Carlos (no relation). Roberto Carlos has sold over 70 million albums around the world. He is considered one of the most influential artists in Brazil, being cited as a source of inspiration by many artists and bands. His net worth is estimated at US$160 million. (Full article...)

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  • ... that Brazilian Olympic gymnast Lorrane Oliveira trained for the circus before starting gymnastics?
  • ... that the neutral oil tanker Hercules carried an unexploded bomb into a Brazilian port after being attacked by Argentine aircraft during the Falklands War?

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Island of Villegaignon
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Panorama of the Dam of Sobradinho, Bahia, Brazil.
Panorama of the Dam of Sobradinho, Bahia, Brazil.
Credit: Glauco Umbelino

Sobradinho Reservoir is both a dam and an artificial lake located in the north of the Brazilian state of Bahia and a city with the same name located near the lake. The lake is about 320 km long, with a surface of 4,214 square kilometers and a storage capacity of 34.1 cubic kilometers at its nominal elevation of 392.50 meters, making it the 12th-largest artificial lake in the world.

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2008 Brazilian Grand PrixAfonso, Prince Imperial of BrazilBrazilian cruiser BahiaEmpire of Brazil1937 Brazilian coup d'étatPedro Álvares CabralChagas diseaseDrymoreomysEuryoryzomys emmonsaeFôrça BrutaGiant otterGol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907Joaquim José Inácio, Viscount of InhaúmaJaguarHonório Hermeto Carneiro Leão, Marquis of ParanáLundomysPrincess Maria Amélia of BrazilMaster SystemBrazilian battleship Minas GeraesMinas Geraes-class battleshipNoronha skinkNoronhomysUSS OrizabaJosé Paranhos, Viscount of Rio BrancoPedro I of BrazilPedro II of BrazilPedro Afonso, Prince Imperial of BrazilBrazilian battleship São PauloLuís Alves de Lima e Silva, Duke of CaxiasSonic After the SequelManuel Marques de Sousa, Count of Porto AlegreSouth American dreadnought raceThalassodromeusTeresa Cristina of the Two SiciliesUruguayan War2014 FIFA World Cup final

List of international goals scored by PeléList of municipalities in Rio Grande do NorteSepultura discography

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1986 João Câmara earthquake1995 Brazilian Grand Prix2000 Brazilian Grand Prix2000 Rio 2002010 Brazilian Grand Prix2010 São Paulo Indy 3002012 Brazilian Grand Prix2014 Brazilian Grand Prix2015 Brazilian Grand PrixA Puro DolorRebeca AndradeArchaeological interest of Pedra da GáveaArise (Sepultura album)Clube Atlético MineiroBomba PatchDisappearance of Bruno BorgesBrainstorm (2000 film)Brazil v Germany (2014 FIFA World Cup)Brazil at the 1994 Winter OlympicsBrazil at the 1998 Winter OlympicsBrazil at the 2014 Winter ParalympicsBrazilian military junta of 1930Gisele BündchenCapybaraAdelir Antônio de CarliHélio CastronevesDorival CaymmiCésar CieloClube Atlético Mineiro in international club footballCavalera ConspiracyDiego CostaPhilippe CoutinhoDejaría TodoDiptychophora galvaniFortress of HumaitáFruta FrescaGanga BrutaGilberto GilMaurício GugelminHilda HilstHurricane CatarinaJorge Ben (album)Josiane LimaMitsuyo MaedaRMS Magdalena (1948)Man of the HoleMango YellowMarquinhosLaura MatsudaThe Naturalist on the River AmazonsLegacy of Pedro II of BrazilEarly life of Pedro II of BrazilPeléBrazilian monitor PiauíPlatine WarPrince Bernhard's titi monkeyMarie RennotteRevolt of the LashRevolution of the GanhadoresRio de Janeiro bid for the 2016 Summer OlympicsSamba rockSarcófagoState University of CampinasSuicidal TourTAM Airlines Flight 3054TV BahiaTaubaté pregnancy hoaxTectoyAmon TobinTransgender history in BrazilUmbandaAlessandra VieiraVinicius and TomMartha WattsWorld War II

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