The
Portuguese were the first European settlers to arrive in the
area, led by adventurous Pedro Cabral, who began the colonial
period back in 1500.
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Life was richly
developed, although both tribal warfare and cannibalism were
still around.
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The only item
of value they discovered was the pau do brasil (brazil wood
tree) from
which they created a red dye.
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The
Portuguese settlers commonly intermarried with both the Indians
and the African
slaves, and there were also mixed marriages between the Africans
and Indians.
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In the 19th
century coffee took the place of sugar as Brazil's most
important product.
The boom in coffee production brought a wave of almost one
million European
immigrants, mostly Italians,this also brought about the
Brazilian republic.
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Brazil has the sixth largest
population in the world, about 148 million people, which has
doubled in the last 30 years.
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Because of its size, there are
only 15 people per sq. km, mostly along the coast and in
the major cities, where two-thirds of the people now live: over
19 million in greater Sao Paulo and 10 million in greater Rio.
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The immigrant
Portuguese language was greatly influenced by the numerous
Indian and African dialects they encountered, although it
remains the dominant language in Brazil
today. |