| Criciúma, Santa Catarina | |||
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| Location in Brazil | |||
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Criciúma, Santa Catarina
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Brazil | ||
| Region | South | ||
| State | Santa Catarina | ||
| Founded | January 6, 1880 | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | Clésio Salvaro (PSDB) | ||
| Area | |||
| • City | 235.628 km2 (91 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 46 m (151 ft) | ||
| Population (2007) | |||
| • City | 192,236 | ||
| • Density | 798.9/km2 (2,069.1/sq mi) | ||
| • Metro | 354,066 | ||
| Time zone | UTC-3 (UTC-3) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-2 (UTC-2) | ||
| HDI (2000) 0.822 – high | |||
Criciúma is a city in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. At , it is located 180 km south of Florianópolis, the state capital and around 900 km south of São Paulo. The city is the center of Brazil's flooring and home materials industry, and is the second-largest such center in the world.
The city was founded on January 6, 1880 by Italian immigrants. It has an approximate population of 180,000 inhabitants, and an area of 209.8 km². In April 2004, Criciúma was affected by a tropical cyclone, a phenomenon unheard of in recent South Atlantic history, which caused some damage.
It is the Brazilian capital of coal and ceramic tiles, but also very strong in plastic, textiles (jeans), and chemicals.
Criciúma is 24 km inland from the Atlantic ocean (Rincão beach) and around 40 km from the mountains of the interior of Santa Catarina state.
Criciúma is also the name of the city's football (soccer) team, which plays in the national league. They have won several championship titles, including a national championship in 1991 (Copa do Brasil). Their colors are white, black and yellow, symbols of the state mineral resources, mainly coal.
Several small towns lie around Criciúma forming a metropolitan area of 250 thousand people. The most important are: Içara (a major producer of honey), Urussanga, Nova Veneza, Siderópolis, Orleans and Araranguá.
The city is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Criciúma. Criciuma's cathedral is Catedral São José.
Criciúma is served by Diomício Freitas Airport located in the adjoining municipality of Forquilhinha.
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