Piau is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
in the
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
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 (literally ...
in the
Southeast region 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 ...
.
History
At the end of the eighteenth century, those who had been involved in the
Inconfidência Mineira were heavily persecuted by the Portuguese Crown. These men (among them was Francisco José da Silva, uncle of
Tiradentes
Joaquim José da Silva Xavier (; 12 November 1746 – 21 April 1792), known as Tiradentes (), was a leading member of the colonial Brazilian revolutionary movement known as Inconfidência Mineira, whose aim was full independence from Po ...
) became fugitives searching for new places to make a new life.
The place they found was set in a vast forest by a river which rises in the
Serra da Mantiqueira
The Mantiqueira Mountains (Portuguese: ''Serra da Mantiqueira iterally: Mantiqueira Mountains Chain') are a mountain range in Southeastern Brazil, with parts in the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro. It rises abruptly from the ...
. The settlers gave this river the name of Rio Piau because of a large amount of fish of this species (
leporinus
''Leporinus'' is a genus of fish in the family Anostomidae native to South America. The fossil species ''Leporinus scalabrinii'', known from the late Miocene of Entre Ríos in Argentina, has only recently been added to this genus after being mis ...
piau?).
The first chapel was built in honour of the Holy Spirit, and the town was named ''Divino Espírito Santo de Piau''. In place of the old chapel there is now the parish church of the Holy Spirit.
The District was created on July 22, 1868. belonging to the municipalities of
Ouro Preto
Ouro Preto (, ''Black Gold''), formerly Vila Rica (, ''Rich Village''), is a city in and former capital of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, a former colonial mining town located in the Serra do Espinhaço mountains and designated a World Herit ...
,
Barbacena
Barbacena is a municipality in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. As of 2020, the municipality had 138,204 inhabitants. The total area of the municipality is .
It is in the foothills of the Serra da Mantiqueira south of the state capital Belo ...
,
Mar de Espanha,
Rio Pomba,
Juiz de Fora
Juiz de Fora (, '' Outsider Judge''), also known as J.F., is a city in the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, approximately from the state border with Rio de Janeiro. According to 2020 estimates the current population is about 57 ...
,
São João Nepomuceno and
Rio Novo. On December 12, 1953 Piau became a municipality in its own right.
Tourism
The main attractions in this small municipality include the countryside, the church, old houses and farms, and since 1984 the banana festival which occurs annually in the second week of July.
Economy
The principal crop is banana and the greater part of the production is sold in Juiz de Fora and its locality.
See also
*
List of municipalities in Minas Gerais
This is a list of the municipalities in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), located in the Southeast Region of Brazil. Minas Gerais is divided into 853 municipalities, which are grouped into 66 microregions, which are grouped into 12 mesoregions.
...
References
Municipalities in Minas Gerais
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