Luz is a Brazilian municipality located in the West (south of the west) part of the state of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literall ...

. Luz is located between the city of

Araxá Araxá () is a municipality in Western Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Its estimated population by IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) in 2020 is 107,337 inhabitants and the area of the municipality is , with making up the urban ...

and the capital city of the state of

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte (, ; ) is the sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population around 2.7 million and with a metropolitan area of 6 million people. It is the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas. The metropol ...

. The population is 18,257 (2020 est.) in an area of 1172 km². The city belongs to the Central Mineira region and to the micro-region of Bom Despacho. It became a municipality in 1923.IBGE

Origin of the name

In the region there was a spring with a dam that supplied water to the small settlement that had grown around a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of the Light, or Nossa Senhora da Luz. The first name of the town was Nossa Senhora da Luz do Aterrado, or Our Lady of the Light of the Dam.Prefeitura municipal de Luz
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Location

The city center of Luz is located at an elevation of 675 meters a short distance south of federal highway BR-262. The

São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...

lies to the east. Neighboring municipalities are: Estrela do Indaiá and

Dores do Indaiá Dores do Indaiá is a Brazilian municipality located in the center of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population was 13,427 people living in a total area of 1,110 km². The city belongs to the meso-region of Central Mineira and to the micro- ...

(N), Bom Despacho (NE), Moema and

Lagoa da Prata Lagoa da Prata is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. In 2020, its population was estimated to be 52,711. The city belongs to the mesoregion of Central Mineira and to the microregion of Bom Despacho. Early history In the 18 ...

(E),

Japaraíba Japaraíba is a Brazilian municipality located in the center of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population was 4,384 people living in a total area of 172 km². The city belongs to the meso-region of Central Mineira and to the micro-region o ...

(SE),

Arcos Arcos or ARCOS can refer to: Places Brazil * Arcos, Minas Gerais, in Brazil Portugal * Arcos de Valdevez, a municipality in the Viana do Castelo District * Arcos (Anadia), a civil parish in the municipality of Anadia * Arcos (Braga), a civil pa ...

and Iguatama (S), Bambuí and Córrego Danta (W). * Distances *

: 188 km on BR-262 * Bom Despacho: 50 km east on BR-262 *

: 36 km north on MG-176 *

Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...

: 640 km *

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

: 635 km *

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...

: 595 km A onde fica
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Geographical Data

''Elevation'' *Maximum: 956 m (Serra Deus me Livre) *Minimum: 680 m (Foz do Ribeirão Jorge Grande) *Center of the city: 674.96 m ''Temperature'' *Average annual: 22.1 °C *Average annual maximum: 29.1 °C *Average annual minimum: 16.7 °C ''Rainfall'' *Average annual rainfall: 1,415.7 mm ''Topography'' *Flat: 40% *Hilly: 50% *Mountainous: 10% ''Rivers'' *Ribeirão Jorge Pequeno *Rio São Francisco *River basin: Basin of the Rio São Francisco

Economic activities

Services, small industries, and agriculture are the most important economic activities. Charcoal production from eucalyptus plantations is also important. In 2005 there were 78 transformation industries employing 540 workers and 342 retail units employing 926 workers. The GDP in 2005 was approximately R$158 million, with 11 million from taxes, 77 million reais from services, 17 million reais from industry, and 52 million reais from agriculture. There were 651 rural producers on 69,000 hectares of land. 183 farms had tractors (2006). Approximately 1700 persons were occupied in agriculture. The main crops are coffee, rice, beans, and corn. There were 96,000 head of cattle, of which 24,000 were milk cows (2006). There were 5 banks (2007): Banco Bradesco (Banco Postal, Correios), Banco do Brasil, Banco Itaú, Caixa Econômica Federal, Crediluz (Cooperativa de Crédito dos Produtores Rurais de Luz). There were 3 hotels: Hotel Turista, Hotel Oeste, and Hotel Planalto. In the vehicle fleet there were 2632 automobiles, 252 trucks, 326 pickup trucks, 19 buses, 43 micro-buses, and 857 motorcycles (2007).

Health and education

In the health sector there were 8 public health clinics and 1 private hospital with 56 beds. (2005). Patients with more serious health conditions are transported to

. Educational needs of 3800 students were met by 10 primary schools, 2 middle schools, and 4 pre-primary schools. *Municipal

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, w ...

: 0.801 (2000) *State ranking: 35 out of 853 municipalities as of 2000 *National ranking: 537 out of 5,138 municipalities as of 2000 *Literacy rate: 90% *Life expectancy: 71 (average of males and females)Frigoletto
In 2000 the per capita monthly income of R$369.00 was above the state average of R$276.00 and below the national average of R$297.00.

Poços de Caldas Poços de Caldas is a municipality in the south of Minas Gerais state, Brazil, in the microregion of the same name. Its estimated population in 2020 was 168,641 inhabitants. The city is known for its hot springs. History Poços was founded in 1 ...

had the highest per capita monthly income in 2000 with R$435.00. The lowest was Setubinha with R$73.00. The highest ranking municipality in Minas Gerais in 2000 was

with 0.841, while the lowest was Setubinha with 0.568. Nationally the highest was

São Caetano do Sul São Caetano do Sul (or São Caetano) ('' Saint Cajetan of the South''. ) is a city in São Paulo state in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo. The population is 161,957 (2020 est.) in an area of 15.33 km2. It is the c ...

in São Paulo with 0.919, while the lowest was Setubinha. In more recent statistics (considering 5,507 municipalities) Manari in the state of

Pernambuco Pernambuco () is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it seventh-most populous state of Brazil and with around 98,148 km², being the ...

has the lowest rating in the country—0,467—putting it in last place.

Notable people

Ronaldo Costa Couto Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries. People Notable people known as Ronaldo include: Ass ...

, writer * Belchior Joaquim da Silva Neto, writer and the second bishop of Luz Diocese * Vicente Joaquim Zico, former archbishop of Belém do Pará