Niterói

Niterói (Portuguese pronunciation: [niteˈɾɔj]) is a municipality of the state of Rio de Janeiro in the southeast region of Brazil. It lies across Guanabara Bay from the city of Rio de Janeiro and forms part of the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area. It has an estimated population of 487,327 inhabitants (2010) and an area of 129.375 km (80.39 mi), making it the sixth most populous city in the state. It has the highest Human Development Index of the state. The city has the nicknames of Nikity, Nicki City and the Smile City (Cidade Sorriso).

Studies by the Getulio Vargas Foundation in June 2011 classified Niterói as the richest city of Brazil, with 55.7% of the population included in class A. Considering the classes A and B, Niterói also appears in the first place, with 85.9% of the population entered in these classes.

The word "Niterói" comes from the Tupi language and means "water that hides". It was founded on 22 November 1573 by the Tupi Amerindian chief Araribóia (who later was converted to Roman Catholicism and given the Christian name of Martim Afonso, after the Portuguese explorer Martim Afonso de Sousa). It makes Niteroi the only Brazilian city to have been founded by a non-Christian, non-assimilated Brazilian Amerindian.

Niterói (magazine)

Niterói: Revista Brasileira (Portuguese for Niterói: Brazilian Magazine) was a magazine created in 1836 by three of the most proeminent Brazilian writers at the time: Gonçalves de Magalhães, Manuel de Araújo Porto-Alegre and Francisco de Sales Torres Homem. It was edited in Paris, France.

The magazine only lasted two issues before it became defunct.

Historical

During the Regency period (1831–1840) of Brazil, the country saw a boom on the publication of periodicals. Due to the historical circumstances of the consolidation of institutions, politics and the own national territory, most of the periodicals at the time had political themes. Niterói, however, was an exception, since it discursed on sciences, arts and literature. It is now considered to be a forerunner of the Romantic movement in Brazil.

Editions

The magazine discussed numerous themes, from comets to the slavist economy of Brazil. In the first issue, Gonçalves de Magalhães published a manifesto named Discurso Sobre a História da Literatura no Brasil, in which he exposed to the Brazilian nation the ideals of the then-new Romantic movement.