| Araranguá, Santa Catarina | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|||
| Nickname(s): "A Cidade das Avenidas" ("The City of the Avenues") | |||
| Location in Brazil | |||
|
Araranguá, Santa Catarina
|
|||
| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Brazil | ||
| Region | South | ||
| State | Santa Catarina | ||
| MesoRegion | MesoRegion Sul Catarinense | ||
| Microregion | Microregion of Araranguá | ||
| Founded | April 3, 1880 | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | Mariano Mazzuco (PP) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 303.799 km2 (117.3 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 13 m (43 ft) | ||
| Population (2010) | |||
| • Total | 61,251 | ||
| • Density | 201.6/km2 (522.2/sq mi) | ||
| • Ethnic Groups | Azorean and Italian | ||
| IBGE/2010 [1] | |||
| Time zone | UTC-3 (UTC-3) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-2 (UTC-2) | ||
| HDI (2000) | 0.814 – high | ||
| Climate Type | Temperate | ||
| Average Temp | 20 °C (68 °F) | ||
| Website | City’s official website | ||
Araranguá is a city located in the southern part of Santa Catarina state, in the south of Brazil. It has 59,134 inhabitants and was settled mainly by Azoreans and Italians. Araranguá is known as "A Cidade das Avenidas" ("The City of the Avenues”) because of its wide roads.
Contents |
Until the 18th century, the city was inhabited mostly by Carijós and Kaingang Indians. These ethnics groups disappeared after the arrival of the first Europeans settlers.
On February 11, 1728, was started the opening of the Caminho dos Conventos way that linked Morro dos Conventos (“Convents Mountain”) to Curitiba. This way became used mostly by the tropeiros, who carried cattle from Rio Grande do Sul to São Paulo. Araranguá became a waypoint for those between Viamão (former capital of Rio Grande do Sul) and Lages (in the top of the Planalto Serrano).[2]
The first to arrive in Araranguá region were the Portugueses, who came from Laguna in the beginning of the 19th century. They first settled in the Morro dos Conventos. Later, Italian, German, Polish and Spanish immigrants and the African slaves arrived in the city.[3] In 1816 was inaugurated in the village of Canjicas the first chapel in the region. In 1864 was created the first church within the current city of Araranguá.[4]
The city was founded April 3, 1880, and was named Araranguá because of the Araranguá River. The village was promoted to the condition of city in 1921.
Along the 20th century the city underwent some dismemberments. The city of Criciúma emancipated in 1925 followed by Turvo (1948), Sombrio (1953), Maracajá (1967) and Balneário Arroio do Silva (1997).
Araranguá was struck by the Cyclone Catarina in the night between March 28 and 29 of 2003 with winds up to 150 km/h. This event still intrigues scientists.[5]
The city was again struck by at least two tornadoes in the night of September, the 29th of 2009, the first ever recorded in the urban area, although others have been already spotted in rural areas. A school gymnasium collapsed over a house and many windows shattered were broken in some shops, but there were no victims.[6]
Araranguá is accessed by road mainly from the BR-101, an important highway that connects several major Brazilian cities. It lies roughly halfway between Porto Alegre and Florianópolis, the former being 210 km (130 mi) away.
The city had an airport served by Varig in the 1950s but the runway remained without maintenance and remained just a dirt strip used by general aviation until the 1990s when the city developed around it and the area became too unsafe to any operation. Currently the nearest airport is located in Criciúma, 31 kilometres or 19 miles away, served only by NHT Linhas Aéreas and some private charter companies. For commercial flights, the Hercílio Luz International Airport, in Florianópolis, is the most widely used.
| Meleiro, Maracajá | Criciúma, Maracajá | Içara | ||
| Turvo | Atlantic Ocean | |||
| Araranguá | ||||
| Ermo | Sombrio | Balneário Arroio do Silva |
|
||||||||||||||