Amapá () is one of the 26 states of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. It is in the northern region of

. It is the second least populous state and the eighteenth largest by area. Located in the far northern part of the country, Amapá is bordered clockwise by

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

to the north, the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

to the east,

Pará Pará is a Federative units of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in northern Brazil and traversed by the lower Amazon River. It borders the Brazilian states of Amapá, Maranhão, Tocantins (state), Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Amazonas (Brazilian state) ...

to the south and west, and

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

to the northwest. The capital and largest city is

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimation). It is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region. It is located on the northern channel of the Amazon River near its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean. The c ...

. The state has 0.4% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for only 0.22% of the Brazilian

GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is often ...

. In the colonial period the region was called Portuguese Guiana and was part of Portugal's

State of Brazil The State of Brazil ( pt, Estado do Brasil) was one of the states of the Portuguese Empire, in the Americas during the period of Colonial Brazil. History In 1621, the Governorate General of Brazil was split into two states, the State of Bra ...

. Later, the region was distinguished from the other

Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

. Amapá was once part of Pará, but became a separate territory in 1943, and a state in 1990. The dominant feature of the region, and 90 percent of its total area, is the

Amazon Rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...

. Unexplored forests occupy 70 percent of Amapá, and

Tumucumaque Mountains National Park The Tumucumaque Mountains National Park ( pt, Parque Nacional Montanhas do Tumucumaque; ) is situated in the Amazon Rainforest in the Brazilian states of Amapá and Pará. It is bordered to the north by French Guiana and Suriname. History Tum ...

, established in 2002, is the largest tropical forest park in the world. The estuary of the River Oiapoque is the northernmost point of coastal Brazil.

History

During the colonial era from 1637 to 1654 the Amapá region was merged into the Captaincy of Pará, this was the Captaincy of Cabo de Norte. In the early colonial period the Amapá region was a rich source of

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

resin In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on natu ...

annatto Annatto ( or ) is an orange-red condiment and food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree (''Bixa orellana''), native to tropical America. It is often used to impart a yellow or orange color to foods, but sometimes also for its flav ...

, vegetable oils, and

salted fish Salted fish, such as kippered herring or dried and salted cod, is fish cured with dry salt and thus preserved for later eating. Drying or salting, either with dry salt or with brine, was the only widely available method of preserving fish unt ...

, all of which were exported to Europe. The French established

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...

plantations in this period. Visata de dentro da Fortaleza de São José de Macapá

With the discovery of mineral deposits the Amapá region was invaded by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, who were ultimately repelled by the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

. The

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne o ...

in 1713 established the boundaries between the

colony of Brazil Colonial Brazil ( pt, Brasil Colonial) comprises the period from 1500, with the arrival of the Portuguese, until 1815, when Brazil was elevated to a kingdom in union with Portugal as the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Dur ...

and

, but these were not respected by the French. A fort was constructed at São José de Macapá, in present-day Macapá, as a base of Portuguese power in the region. In the 18th century, France retook control of the area. This international dispute continued until 1900. With the discovery of

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

and the increasing value of

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

on the international market during the 19th century, outsider population increased in Amapá and the territorial dispute with France was brought to a head. French settlers established the State of Counani (1886–1891). The gold rush however brought in Brazilian interests who gained control of the territory, which led to clashes with the French. The dispute was sent for arbitration and on 1 December 1900, the Arbitration Commission of Geneva awarded possession of the territory to Brazil. It was incorporated into the state of

, with the joint name of Araguari (named for the river of the same name). It became the federal

territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

of Amapá in 1943. The discovery of rich

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

deposits in

Serra do Navio Serra do Navio (), (''Mountain range of the Ship'') is a municipality located in the center of the state of Amapá in Brazil. Its population is 5,488 (2020 est.) and its area is 7,713 km². In the 1947, Manganese was discovered in the area. Se ...

in 1945 revolutionized the local economy. Manganese remains the largest source of revenue in the state. Amapá did not achieve statehood until 5 October 1988, at the time of the promulgation of the new

Brazilian Constitution The Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil ( pt, Constituição da República Federativa do Brasil) is the supreme law of Brazil. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of Brazil and the feder ...

Geography

File:Floresta Nacional do Amapá César Favacho (25).jpg, Amapá National Forest File:Monte Karupina, Terra Indígena Uaçá.jpg, Karupina mountain in the Uaçá Indigenous Territory, Amapá, Brazil. The State of Amapá possesses the lowest rate of loss of its original vegetation for any Brazilian state, estimated at only 2%. Most of the Amapá territory is covered with

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

, while the remaining areas are covered with

savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...

and

plain In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...

s. On the Amapá coast, almost intact beaches mix with swamps, creating the largest representation of this biome in Brazil. This mixture of salt and fresh water is perfect for the food chain reproduction for several animal species. Pollution, however, is now a chronic problem in the state of Amapá. Mercury, which is used in the extraction of gold, is widely found in water sources and sewage systems in the population centers of Amapá.

Nature

To protect the natural resources of the state, there are, as of 2016, 12

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

s and five indigenous territories covering , or 72% of the state. The

Amapá Biodiversity Corridor The Amapá Biodiversity Corridor ( pt, Corredor de Biodiversidade do Amapá) is an ecological corridor in the state of Amapá, Brazil. It provides a degree of integrated management for conservation units and other areas covering over 70% of the ...

has been established in 2003 to provide integrated management for conservation area. The most important protected areas are the

located in west of the state, and the

Cabo Orange National Park The Cabo Orange National Park ( pt, Parque Nacional do Cabo Orange) is a National park located in Amapá state in the north of Brazil, near the border between Brazil and French Guiana. Location The Cabo Orange National Park has an area of . It ...

located near the coast. The Tumucumaque Mountains National Park is the world's largest tropical forest

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

. The Cabo Orange National Park contains flooded grasslands and

mangrove forest Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand fr ...

s which are important fish nurseries.

Climate

Most of Amapá has a

Tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...

, a

tropical climate Tropical climate is the first of the five major climate groups in the Köppen climate classification identified with the letter A. Tropical climates are defined by a monthly average temperature of 18 °C (64.4 °F) or higher in the cool ...

with a short

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...

and heavy rainfall for the majority of the year. In the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

, it is classified under the letters ''Am''.

Tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equatori ...

is the natural vegetation, and also provides the other climate type located in the state.

Demographics

According to the

IBGE The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics ( pt, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística; IBGE) is the agency responsible for official collection of statistical, geographic, cartographic, geodetic and environmental information ...

of 2010, there were 668,689 people residing in the state, with a population density of 4.3/km². The population of Amapá is highly urbanized, with 93.7% of the population residing primarily in Macapá and

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer Boats * Santana 20, an American sailboat design by W. D. Sch ...

Population growth Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 83 million annually, or 1.1% per year. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to ...

: 5.7% (1991–2000);

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

s: 144,000 (2006). During the 2010 census, 65% identified as

Pardo ''Pardos'' (feminine ''pardas'') is a term used in the former Portuguese and Spanish colonies in the Americas to refer to the triracial descendants of Southern Europeans, Amerindians and West Africans. In some places they were defined as ne ...

(multiracial), 24% as

White Brazilians White Brazilians ( pt, brasileiros brancos ) refers to Brazilians, Brazilian citizens who are considered or self-identify as "white", typically because of Ethnic groups in Europe, European or Levant, Levantine descent. The main ancestry of curre ...

, 8.7% as Black Brazilians and 1.1% as

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

. The remaining 1.2% are

Asians Asian people (or Asians, sometimes referred to as Asiatic people)United States National Library of Medicine. Medical Subject Headings. 2004. November 17, 200Nlm.nih.gov: ''Asian Continental Ancestry Group'' is also used for categorical purpos ...

and undeclared. The majority of the residents of Amapá live in poverty. According to the

Fundação Getulio Vargas Fundação Getulio Vargas (''Getulio Vargas Foundation'', often abbreviated as FGV) is a Brazilian higher education institution and think tank founded on December 20, 1944, with the mission to "stimulate Brazil’s socioeconomic development". Its ...

(FGV) 36.56% of the population live on only R$79 per month, which the foundation considers below a decent standard of living.

Municipalities

Indigenous population

The

Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...

tribes in Amapá are located in the north near the

Oiapoque River The Oyapock or Oiapoque (; ; ) is a long river in South America that forms most of the border between the French overseas department of French Guiana and the Brazilian state of Amapá. Course The Oyapock runs through the Guianan moist for ...

, and in the east in the Wayampi Indigenous Territory. All the indigenous territories in Amapá have been demarcated. The tribes living in Amapá are the

Galibi do Oiapoque The Kalina, also known as the Caribs or mainland Caribs and by several other names, are an indigenous people native to the northern coastal areas of South America. Today, the Kalina live largely in villages on the rivers and coasts of Venezuela, ...

, the

Karipuna do Amapá The Karipuna do Amapá (also: Karipúna) are an indigenous people located in the riverine areas of the Brazilian state of Amapá, particularly around the Caripi River. In 2014, the population was estimated at 2,922 people. History The Amerindi ...

, the

Palikur The Palikur are an indigenous people located in the riverine areas of the Brazilian state of Amapá and in French Guiana, particularly in the south-eastern border region, on the north bank of the Oyapock River. The Palikur Nation, or ''naoné'', ...

, the

Wayampi The Wayampi or Wayãpi are an indigenous people located in the south-eastern border area of French Guiana at the confluence of the rivers Camopi and Oyapock, and the basins of the Amapari and Carapanatuba Rivers in the central part of the state ...

and the

Galibi Marwono The Kalina, also known as the Caribs or mainland Caribs and by several other names, are an indigenous people native to the northern coastal areas of South America. Today, the Kalina live largely in villages on the rivers and coasts of Venezuela, ...

. The region around the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

used to support a large population of Amerindians during the

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...

era. The policy of the Portuguese monarchy was to engage in war in order to clear them from the land. The

Cabanagem The Cabanagem (; 1835–1840) was a popular revolution and pro-separatist movement that occurred in the then province of Grão-Pará, Empire of Brazil. Among the causes for this revolt were the extreme poverty of the Paraense people, oppressio ...

Revolt in the 1830s, resulted in the final dispersal of the Amerindians along the Amazon.

Education

is the official national language, and thus the primary language taught in schools.

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

is the second language taught in every school due to the proximity of

. A creole language called Lanc-Patuá is spoken among some of the people.

Educational institutions

* Universidade Federal do Amapá (Unifap) (Federal University of Amapá) * Universidade Estadual do Amapá (UEAP) (Amapá State University) * Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Amapá (IFAP) (Amapá Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology) * Centro de Ensino Superior do Amapá (Ceap) * Instituto de Ensino Superior do Amapá (Iesap) * Instituto Macapaense de Ensino Superior (IMMES) * Faculdade Seama (Seama College)

Economy

The

service sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...

is the largest component of

at 87.6%, followed by the

industrial sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in construction ...

at 7.8%.

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

represents 4.6% of

(2004). Amapá exports:

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

75.5%,

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 April 2 ...

s 18.7%,

heart of palm Heart of palm is a vegetable harvested from the inner core and growing bud of certain palm trees, most notably the coconut (''Cocos nucifera''), juçara (''Euterpe edulis''), açaí palm (''Euterpe oleracea''), palmetto (''Sabal'' spp.), and pe ...

5.5% (2002). The state, which has 0.4% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for only 0.22% of the Brazilian

Transport

International Airport

The main airport of the state is Macapá International Airport. On 12 April 2019 a new terminal was opened replacing an older facility. Following its closure, the old terminal was demolished to make room for an enlarged apron which was completed by 2020.

Highways

There are two federal highways in Amapá:

BR-156 BR-156 is a federal highway of Brazil. The road consists of 552 km between Oiapoque and Macapá, and 271 km between Macapá and Laranjal do Jari (except via Santana city), totalling 823 km of road through forest and savannah. Only the road betwe ...

connects

Laranjal do Jari Laranjal do Jari () (''Jari Orangery'') is a municipality located in the west of the state of Amapá in Brazil. It is the only municipality in the west boundaries of Amapá, except for a small part of Vitória do Jari. Its population is 51,362 an ...

and

Oiapoque Oiapoque () is a municipality in the north of the state of Amapá, Brazil. Its population is 27,906 and its area is . Oiapoque is also a major river in the same state, forming the international border with French Guiana. The Oyapock River Bridge, c ...

. The highway is connected to the road network of

via the

Oyapock River Bridge The Franco-Brazilian Binational Bridge spans the Oyapock River, linking the cities of Oiapoque in Amapá, Brazil and Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock in French Guiana, France. The bridge is cable-stayed, with two towers rising to a height of and a l ...

BR-210 BR-210 is a federal highway of Brazil. The 411.7 kilometre road, popularly known as ' ("north perimeter"), is primarily located in the Northern Brazilian state of Roraima, with other segments in Amazonas, Pará, and Amapá. The planning of the h ...

connects Macapá with

. It is supposed to be extended all the way to the border with

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

in Amazonas, however as of 2021, it ends in the Wayampi Indigenous Territory. An important state road is the AP-010 which connects Macapá with

and

Mazagão Velho Mazagão Velho is a district and town in the Brazilian municipality of Mazagão, in the state of Amapá. The town was founded in 1773 by refugees from the former colony of Mazagão in Morocco. Mazagão Velho is known for the Festival of São Tiag ...

. There are no road connections to other Brazilian states. In

there is a ferry to

Monte Dourado Monte Dourado is a town and district in the Brazilian municipality of Almeirim, in the state of Pará. Monte Dourando is a planned town established in 1967 to house the workers for the Jari project. The city is located on the Jari River. History ...

. In

Port Santana A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

, there is a ferry to

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará) often called Belém of Pará, is a Brazilian city, capital and largest city of the state of Pará in t ...

, Pará.

Ports and harbours

There is a small port in Macapá, however it is not suitable for cargo traffic. The main harbour is the Port of Santana which is also used for international cargo.

Flag

The flag was adopted by Decree No. 8 of 23 April 1984. The blue represents the sky over Amapá and justice, the green represents the native rainforest, and the yellow represents the Union and its natural resources. The black stands for the deceased who worked for the state, and the white for the will of the state to live in peace and stability. The symbol on the hoist-side represents the Fortress of São José, out of which the state capital grew. Before 1984, the state had a red-white-red flag, based on the flag of

, and similar to the

flag of Peru The flag of Peru was adopted by the government of Peru in 1824, and modified in 1950. According to the article 49 of the Constitution of Peru, it is a vertical triband (flag), triband with red outer bands and a single white middle band. Dependi ...

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amapá States of Brazil * 1988 establishments in Brazil States and territories established in 1988 The Guianas

History

Geography

Nature

Climate

Demographics

Municipalities

Indigenous population

Education

Educational institutions

Economy

Transport

International Airport

Highways

Ports and harbours

Flag

See also

References

External links