Iguatama

Iguatama is a Brazilian municipality located in the west of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population as of 2007 was 7,632 people living in a total area of 627 km². The city belongs to the meso-region of Oeste de Minas and to the micro-region of Piumhi. It became a municipality in 1944.

Origin of the name

Iguatama is a Tupi-Guarani name, Yguaterama or Igua-terrama. This name was suggested by a local pharmacist and means "place where the river opens in bends", or "inlet of my land", or even "place where the river opens up into a lake".

Location

The city center of Iguatama is located at an elevation of 664 meters. The São Francisco River passes by the town. Neighboring municipalities are: Bambuí (N), Arcos (E), Pains (S), and Doresópolis (W).

The distance to Belo Horizonte is 258 km. The distance to the closest regional center Arcos is 23 km. Highway connections are made by BR-354.

Economic activities

Services, small industries, and agriculture are the most important economic activities. The town is known for its cheese and traditional sweets. The GDP in 2005 was approximately R$117 million, 12 million reais from taxes, 33 million reais from services, 49 million reais from industry, and 21 million reais from agriculture. There were 339 rural producers on 37,000 hectares of land. 77 farms had tractors (2006). Approximately 900 persons were dependent on agriculture. The main crops are beans, soybeans, sorghum, and corn. There were 37,000 head of cattle (2006).