Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul (
pron. IPA: //
[The presented pronunciation is in Brazilian Portuguese. The European Portuguese pronunciation is: //.]; English: "Large Southern River") is the southernmost
state of
Brazil, and the state with the highest standard of life . It is bordered on the north by the Brazilian state of
Santa Catarina, on the east by the
Atlantic Ocean, on the south by
Uruguay, and on the west by
Argentina.
Despite being mainly rural for much of its early history, Rio Grande do Sul served as the launching pad for several wars Brazil waged against its southern and western neighbors. It also was a focal point for internal rebellion in the
19th century.
Getulio Vargas, who led Brazil as dictator from 1930 and later was elected president in 1950, was a native of Rio Grande do Sul (known as
Gauchos).
Rio Grande do Sul's prairies have been the scene of bloody wars: the dispute between Portugal and Spain for the Sacramento Colony, the Guarani Missions War, the
War of Tatters, the Federalist Revolution, the Maurers Revolt and the Vargas's levant.
Rio Grande do Sul's population consists primarily of the descendants of European
immigrants, especially
Portuguese,
Italians, and
Germans and, to a much smaller extent, groups of
Poles,
Spanish,
Russians,
Lithuanians,
Ukrainians and
Jews. In the 1960s, a number of
Japanese immigrants settled in various parts of the state.
The first
German immigrant families arrived in Rio Grande do Sul in
1824 at the town of
São Leopoldo, and within the next one hundred years an estimated quarter of a million Germans settled in Brazil, mostly in Rio Grande do Sul and the neighboring state of
Santa Catarina.
Most of the
German speakers in southern Brazil spoke or eventually adopted the
Hunsrückisch dialect so that it became the most commonly used German dialect in this part of the world and is still spoken by millions today (also referred to as
Riograndenser Hunsrückisch to differentiate it from the Hunsrückisch spoken in Germany).
In its 180 years of history
Riograndenser Hunsrückisch has been greatly influenced by other German dialects (such as
Pomeranian,
Pfälzisch) and by immigrant languages such as the national language,
Portuguese but also to some degree by
Italian.
Talian is a uniquely Brazilian variety of
Italian not spoken anywhere else in the world. The emergence of
Talian in Rio Grande do Sul happened because of the great variety of Italian dialects that came together into a fairly compact and specific geographical location of the state. Talian is frequently called
Vêneto because it is close to the
Venetian language spoken in Italy's
Veneto region.
Italian immigrants began arriving in the area in the late 1800's, settling mostly in the hilly Northeastern parts of Rio Grande do Sul. Soon the region became the most important grape and wine-producing region in
Brazil. Although the climate does not favor the production of the finest wines, the last few years have seen great progress in winemaking, especially with white sparkling wines.
All minority languages in southern Brazil have experienced a significant degrees of decline in the last few decades, not only immigrant languages such as
Italian or
Talian and
German, but also the
indigenous languages of the
Kaingang (also spelled
Kaingáng,
Cainguangue, etc.) and the
GuaranÃ.
In the far western area of the state are the remnants of Brazil's
17th century Jesuit missions or reductions (
aldeias) to the Guaranà Indians. Important to the region, it should be noted that Jesuit Father
Roque Gonzales also known as
Roque Gonzales de Santa Cruz arrived from
Paraguay on the 3rd of May of
1626 to establish the
Saint Nicolas mission (today known as
São Nicolau) was the first white person to enter in what is today know as the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Of all the ruins left behind by the vanished Guarani Missions, the most significant one is
São Miguel or
São Miguel Arcanjo, located nearby the present city of
Santo Ângelo. There is an ongoing
Light and Sound (or
Som e Luz in Portuguese) show presented at the ruins of the São Miguel church. Originally part of Uruguayan territory it was lost in the Uruguayan struggle for independence. Uruguay could have lost all of the Rio Grande do Sul area if not for the help of Argentina, which wanted to defeat Brazil.
|
Neo-Gothic Cathedral in Canela |
Ecotourism is very popular in the Germanesque cities of
Gramado and
Canela; their cold weather is among their attractions for
internal tourism. Tourism is also high in the
wine regions of the state, principally
Caxias do Sul and
Bento Gonçalves. The pampas of the native Brazilian
gaúcho are both a national and international curiosity to tourists and their customs are alive in the capital city of
Porto Alegre as well as in the cities of the "interior" or western Rio Grande do Sul such as
Santa Maria and
Passo Fundo. The state is also home to the historic
São Miguel das Missões, the ruins of an 18th century Jesuit Mission.
Tourist Routes
The state of Rio Grande do Sul and its cities have developed a series scenic routes to appeal to tourists. The
Rota Romântica is a popular scenic drive that exhibits the diverse Germanic culture of the mountainous regions of the state referred to as the
Serra Gaúcha. One can visit the states Italian settlements through
Caminhos da Colônia, tour the wine country through the
Rota da Uva e o Vinho and visit a subsection of the Rota Romântica called the
Região das Hortênsias, the region filled with beautiful blue
hydrangea flowers each spring.
Porto Alegre (the state capital),
Caxias do Sul,
Pelotas,
Canoas,
São Leopoldo,
Novo Hamburgo,
Santa Maria,
Rio Grande,
Passo Fundo,
Santa Cruz do Sul,
Erechim,
GravataÃ,
Bento Gonçalves,
Uruguaiana,
Livramento,
Gramado,
Nova Petropolis,
Canela and
Bagé.
See also:
*
List of cities in Brazil (all cities and municipalities)
*85% white
**
Italian-riograndensers (30%);
**
German-riograndensers (25%);
**
Portuguese-riograndensers (25%);
**5% others (
Polish-riograndensers, Ukrainian-riograndensers, Russians-riograndensers, etc)
*9% mestizo (mixed European and American Indian ancestry, mixed european and african, mixed african and american indian ancestry our mixed european, african and american indian ancestry)
*5.4%
Afro-riograndenser*0.4% Asian (see
Japanese-riograndenser and
Chinese-riograndenser)
*0.2% native American
Minority languages spoken in Rio Grande do Sul can be divided into two groups: Indigenous languages(
Guarani,
Caingangue, etc.) and European derived Languages (
Portanol,
Talian,
Veneto/
Italian,
Riograndenser Hunsrückisch,
Low German,
Pommeranisch -
German dialects-,
Polish and other
Slavic languages).
One of the most prosperous Brazilian states, Rio Grande do Sul is known especially for grain production, viticulture, ranching, and for its considerable industrial output. Natives of the state are known as
gaúchos, named after the cattle herders and ranchers who settled the state's
pampa regions.
The flag was established by law no. 5213 of
January 5 1966. However, its design dates back much more. The independent Rio Grande Republic adopted the flag in 1836, in 1891 the shield in the center was added. According to the common interpretion of the flag colors the green and yellow stands for the
Flag of Brazil and the red for the blood spilt during the internal rebellion for the independent Rio Grande Republic.
The state of Rio Grande do Sul is known as one of the most rich in culture state of
Brazil. Rio Grande's music is a join of many styles (Prata's Rhythms in majority), as the
Chamamé,
Milonga,
Polca,
Chacarera and
Tango.
*
Official homepage (Brazilian Portuguese)
