São Paulo (state)

São Paulo (Portuguese pronunciation: [sɐ̃w ˈpawlu]) is a state in Brazil. It is the major industrial and economic powerhouse of the Brazilian economy. Named after Saint Paul, São Paulo has the largest population, industrial complex, and economic production in the country. It is the richest state in Brazil. The capital, São Paulo, is also the largest city in South America (and the Southern Hemisphere).

Often dubbed the "locomotive of Brazil", the state alone is responsible for 40% of the Brazilian GDP, being the state with the highest GDP. In addition to increased GDP, São Paulo also has the highest Human Development Index, the highest GDP per capita, the second lowest infant mortality rate and the fourth lowest rate of illiteracy among the states of Brazil.

With 44,035,304 inhabitants in 2014, São Paulo is the most populous state in Brazil and the third most populous political unit of South America, only surpassed by that country and Colombia, ahead of all other South American countries. São Paulo's capital city is ranked thirteenth among the largest cities on the planet and its metropolitan area, with 20,935,204 inhabitants, is the seventh largest in the world.

São Paulo (Nuno Gonçalves)

São Paulo (English: Saint Paul) is a painting by Portuguese Renaissance artist Nuno Gonçalves. It is held at the National Museum of Ancient Art, in Lisbon.

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Brazil

Coordinates: 10°S 52°W / 10°S 52°W / -10; -52

Brazil (ⁱ/brəˈzɪl/; Portuguese: Brasil [bɾaˈziw] ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: República Federativa do Brasil,  listen  ), is the largest sovereign state in both South America and the Latin American region. It is the world's fifth-largest country, both by geographical area and by population. It is the largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world, and the only one in the Americas.

Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, Brazil has a coastline of 7,491 km (4,655 mi). It borders all other South American countries except Ecuador and Chile and occupies 47.3 percent of the continent of South America. Its Amazon River 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 makes Brazil one of 17 megadiverse countries, and is the subject of significant global interest and debate regarding deforestation and environmental protection.

Brasil (mythical island)

Brasil, also known as Hy-Brasil or several other variants, is a phantom island said to lie in the Atlantic Ocean west of Ireland. Irish myths described it as cloaked in mist except for one day every seven years, when it became visible but still could not be reached.

Etymology of the name

The etymology of the names Brasil and Hy-Brasil is unknown, but in Irish tradition it is thought to come from the Irish Uí Breasail (meaning "descendants (i.e., clan) of Breasal"), one of the ancient clans of northeastern Ireland. cf. Old Irish: Í: island; bres: beauty, worth, great, mighty.

Despite the similarity, the name of the country Brazil has no connection to the mythical islands. The South American country was at first named Ilha de Vera Cruz (Island of the True Cross) and later Terra de Santa Cruz (Land of the Holy Cross) by the Portuguese navigators who discovered the land. After some decades, it started to be called "Brazil" (Brasil, in Portuguese) due to the exploitation of native Brazilwood, at that time the only export of the land. In Portuguese, brazilwood is called pau-brasil, with the word brasil commonly given the etymology "red like an ember", formed from Latin brasa ("ember") and the suffix -il (from -iculum or -ilium).

Brazil (book)

Brazil is a 2012 book by Michael Palin published on 11 October 2012. The book accompanies the TV series Brazil with Michael Palin.

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