Santa Maria is a
municipality (''município'') in the central region of
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative_units_of_Brazil#List, fifth-most-populous state and the List of Brazilian st ...
, the southernmost state of
Brazil. In 2020, its population was 283,677 inhabitants in a total area of . Santa Maria is the 5th biggest municipality in the state, and the largest in its micro-region.
Santa Maria is often referred to as the "heart of Rio Grande" (from Portuguese: "''Coração do Rio Grande''"), because the city is located in the geographical center of the State.
History and Importance
The first inhabitants of Santa Maria were the Minuano Indigenous People, who lived in a region of the municipality known as Coxilha do Pau Fincado, and the Tapes, who lived in the hills.
With the arrival of Spanish and Portuguese colonizers this border region was witness to innumerable battles between rival groups. Finally, in 1797 the border between the two colonies was established by a commission (''1ª Subdivisão da Comissão Demarcadora de Limites da América dat lit Meridional)''. This commission set up camp on the site of present-day Santa Maria.
The camp was known as ''Acampamento de Santa Maria'', later adding ''Boca do Monte'' to the name. 1828 saw the arrival of the 28th Battalion of Foreigners, made up of hired Germans to fight against the inhabitants of present-day
Uruguay in the
Cisplatine War. After the war many of the soldiers decided to stay in Santa Maria, beginning the cycle of German colonization. In 1857, Santa Maria was separated from Cachoeira do Sul and elevated to
town (''vila'') status. The municipality was created on 16 December 1857 and installed on 17 May 1858.
Since 1910, the city is the seat of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Maria, and annually hosts an important
Roman Catholic festival dedicated to Nossa Senhora Medianeira, called "''Romaria da Medianeira''" (''Medianeira'' or
Mediatrix
Mediatrix is a title given to Mary, mother of Jesus in Christianity. It refers to the intercessory role of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a mediator in the salvific redemption by her son Jesus Christ and that he bestows graces through her. Mediatrix i ...
is a name of
Our Lady that was created in
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
,
Italy). Every year, hundreds of thousands of people from all over Brazil join in the celebrations.
Due to its strategic geographical location, Santa Maria has a large military force, including the
Santa Maria Air Force Base
Santa Maria Air Force Base – ALA4 is a base of the Brazilian Air Force, located in Santa Maria, Brazil.
It shares some facilities with Santa Maria Airport.
History
In 1944 the then President of Brazil Getúlio Vargas allocated an area ...
of the
Brazilian Air Force
"Wings that protect the country"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = Hino dos Aviadores
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 22 May (anniver ...
, which houses four units, and the 3rd Army Division of the
Southern Military Command
The Southern Military Command ( pt, Comando Militar do Sul or CMS) is one of eight Military Commands of the Brazilian Army. The Southern Military Command is responsible for the defence of the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná and Santa Catari ...
. In 2011, the German defence company
Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co. KG (KMW) closed a deal to renovate old tanks and produce new ones for the Brazilian Army, opening a factory in Santa Maria. This earned the city its new nickname, "Armoured Capital" (from Portuguese: ''Capital dos Blindados'').
On 27 January 2013, a fire broke out in the '
'Kiss"'' nightclub'' during a band performance, due to misuse of pyrotechnics, which got in direct contact with the acoustic foam used in the club. In total, 242 people died due to suffocation or trampling while trying to escape, or of complication in days and months following the event. It has been reported that as many as 1,500 people were in the nightclub when the fire broke out.
Population
Santa Maria is the fifth largest city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, after
Porto Alegre,
Caxias do Sul
Caxias do Sul (), is a city in Rio Grande do Sul, Southern Brazil, situated in the state's mountainous Serra Gaúcha region. It was established by Italian immigrants on June 20, 1890. Today it is the second largest city in the state of Rio Gr ...
,
Pelotas, and
Canoas
Canoas (), which earned city status in 1939, is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. With more than 340,000 inhabitants, it is part of the Porto Alegre conurbation and has the second highest GDP in the state. It is also th ...
. Many of the city's inhabitants are of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
and
Italian ancestries.
It is the largest city in the central region of the state, concentrating 36.40% of this region's population. During the period between 2000 and 2010, Santa Maria had a demographic growth rate of 6.00%.
The municipality contains 10
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
. The city of Santa Maria itself is located in the urban Seat District (''Distrito Sede''), which is divided into 8 ''regiões administrativas'' (
administrative regions
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
), and further subdivided into 40 ''
bairro
A ''bairro'' () is a Portuguese language, Portuguese word for a Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter or a neighborhood or, sometimes, a district which is within a city or town. It is commonly used in Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, ...
s'' (
neighbourhoods
A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; American and British English spelling differences, see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community ...
). About 95% of the municipality's total population is concentrated in the Seat District. One of the districts is
Palma
Palma or La Palma means palm in a number of languages and may also refer to:
Geography Africa
*Palma, Mozambique, city
** Palma District
*La Palma, one of the Canary Islands, Spain
**La Palma (DO), a ''Denominación de Origen'' for wines from the ...
.
Economy
The economy is based on
services,
industry,
government services, and
agriculture. In 2006, there were 934 transformation industries employing 6,344 workers.
Commerce employed 12,180 workers,
public administration employed 4,783 workers, the health sector employed 3,799 workers, and
education employed 6,362 workers. In the agricultural sector, there were 2,335 establishments employing 7,000 workers. The main activities are
cattle raising with over 100,000 head in 2006, and growth of
rice,
corn
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
,
soybean, and
wheat.
[IBGE Cidades](_blank)
Transportation
Santa Maria is a major
highway and
railroad hub. The city has a strategic location in connecting Brazil to other
Mercosul
The Southern Common Market, commonly known by Spanish language, Spanish abbreviation Mercosur, and Portuguese language, Portuguese Mercosul, is a South American trade bloc established by the Treaty of Asunción in 1991 and Protocol of Ouro Preto ...
countries, mainly through the following highways:
*
BR-158
BR-158 is a federal highway of Brazil. One of the longest highways in the country, the road connects Altamira, Pará, to Santana do Livramento on the Uruguayan border where it joins Route 5 (Uruguay).
In the original planning of the Ministry of ...
– connects Santa Maria to northern and southwestern
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative_units_of_Brazil#List, fifth-most-populous state and the List of Brazilian st ...
, allowing access to
Uruguaiana, in the
Argentine
Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
border, and to
Rivera,
Uruguay.
* BR-287 – east-west highway, connecting the city to the capital of the state,
Porto Alegre.
Railways are used for cargo transportation, mainly of agricultural products, automobile parts and food.
Santa Maria is away from the River Terminal of
Cachoeira do Sul
Cachoeira do Sul () is a municipality in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, southernmost Brazil.
Its Marian Catedral da Nossa Senhora da Conceição http://www.gcatholic.org/churches/brazil/2666.htm GCatholic is the episcopal see of the Roman Catholi ...
, which allows ship transport until the port of Porto Alegre through the
Jacuí River
The Jacuí River () is a river in Rio Grande do Sul state of southern Brazil. The Jacuí empties into the Guaíba River, an estuarine arm of the Lagoa dos Patos, a large coastal lagoon connected to the Atlantic Ocean.
Sources
The Jacuí River, ...
, and from there to the
Atlantic Ocean, through the
Lagoa dos Patos
Lagoa dos Patos (, , ; English: ''Ducks' Lagoon'') is the largest lagoon in Brazil and the largest coastal lagoon in South America. It is located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. It covers an area of , is long and has a maximu ...
.
Santa Maria Airport is located away from downtown, in the neighborhood of Camobi. It has capacity for large airplanes and offers daily flights to Porto Alegre,
Santo Ângelo
Santo Ângelo is a municipality located in northwestern Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. It has about 77,568 inhabitants (according to 2020 IBGE estimate) and the total area of the municipality is about 679 km². It borders Giruá to the no ...
and
Uruguaiana.
Santa Maria Air Force Base - ALA4, one of their most important bases of the
Brazilian Air Force
"Wings that protect the country"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = Hino dos Aviadores
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 22 May (anniver ...
, is located in Santa Maria and shares some facilities with the airport.
Distances to other cities
*Santa Maria—Porto Alegre: .
*Santa Maria—Pelotas: .
*Santa Maria—Cruz Alta: .
*Santa Maria—Uruguaiana: .
*Santa Maria—Passo Fundo: .
*Santa Maria—Caxias do Sul: .
Education
A popular nickname for Santa Maria is "University City" (Portuguese: "C''idade Universitária''") or "Culture city" (Portuguese: "C''idade Cultura''"), due to its large student population. The largest university, the
Federal University of Santa Maria, was founded in 1960 by José Mariano da Rocha Filho; while the private university center
Universidade Franciscana
Universidade Franciscana is a private university center in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and La ...
was founded in 1951. The city also has a number of other smaller private colleges, such as the
Methodist University of Santa Maria
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...
(FAMES).
Climate
Santa Maria has a
humid subtropical climate and its annual average temperature is . In January, the warmest month, highs frequently surpass with the average low dropping to . In June, the coldest month, highs reach and lows usually go below , reaching up to , but snow is a rare occurrence. Rainfall is distributed evenly throughout the year with a monthly average of .
Quality of life
According to the United Nations (PNUD 2000), Santa Maria ranks 45th in quality of life in Brazil and 9th in the state. According to data from 2006, from Fundação de Economia e Estatística – FEE, life expectancy at birth is of 74.01 years and the demographic density of the municipality is .
The level of atmospheric pollution in Santa Maria is low, since the urban area, for the most part, is composed of retail commerce and services, without polluting sectors.
Sport
Santa Maria has two football teams,
Inter-SM and
Riograndense-SM, one
American football team, th
Santa Maria Soldiersand one Rugby team, the Universitario Rugby.
Paleontology
The city is the birthplace of
paleontology in
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative_units_of_Brazil#List, fifth-most-populous state and the List of Brazilian st ...
and
Brazil. The
Paleontological Sites of Santa Maria
The Paleontological Sites of Santa Maria are located in the city of Santa Maria (Rio Grande do Sul), Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and dating from the Triassic. Are in the Santa Maria Formation and Caturrita Formation.
History
In 1901 th ...
are internationally known. In 1902, a
Rhynchosaur was collected in Santa Maria, one of the first fossil collections made in South America since Darwin's voyage on the Beagle between 1831 and 1836.
Llewellyn Ivor Price
Llewellyn Ivor Price (October 9, 1905 – June 9, 1980) was one of the first Brazilian paleontologists. His work contributed not only to the development of Brazilian but also to global paleontology. He collected '' Staurikosaurus'', the first ...
, a Santa Maria-born paleontologist and one of the first
Brazilian ones, collected a
Staurikosaurus
''Staurikosaurus'' (Pronounced "STORE-ee-koh-SAWR-us", "Southern Cross lizard") is a genus of herrerasaurid dinosaur from the Late Triassic of Brazil, found in the Santa Maria Formation.
Description
Colbert (1970) described ''Staurikosaurus' ...
, the first Brazilian
dinosaur. The city is located on a huge deposit of
fossils
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in ...
, with more than 20 Paleontological Sites.
In October 2009, free distribution of one thousand copies of the book Vertebrados Fósseis de Santa Maria e Região (''Vertebrate Fossils of Santa Maria and surrounding regions'' in
English). The book will be delivered to institutions, schools and libraries in
Santa Maria, in order to spread the teaching of this subject in the region. The book was published by the council of the city.
Vertebrate Fossils of Santa Maria and surrounding regions.
/ref>
Already published two comic books with titles Xiru Lautério e Os Dinossauros I and II, in order to disclose the paleontology and gaucho culture among children of city and region.
References
External links
The city's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santa Maria, Rio Grande Do Sul
Municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul