Cunha is a municipality in the state of

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. It is part of the

Metropolitan Region of Vale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

. The population is 21,459 (2020 est.) in an area of 1,407.25 km².Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística
/ref> The first inhabitants arrived in the beginning of the 18th century. The municipality was founded in 1785, it was elevated to a city in 1858. Since 1975 Cunha has become an important center of stoneware

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porce ...

, with 5 Noborigama wood fired

kilns A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects made from clay into ...

and 16 ceramics studios in all. The city is visited for ceramics, a pleasant climate, natural parks and

gastronomy Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between Human food, food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well ver ...

. In recent years tourism to the region has grown, with visitors coming from around the region to enjoy the local state park (Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar), artisan shops such as Aracatu an
Oficina da Lã
as well as festivals like the annual lamb festival (Festival do Cordeiro). On October 25, 2015, Cunh
hosted the first edition
of the Brazilian portion of the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

cycling Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

competition. Cunha is located in the road which connect

Presidente Dutra Highway The Rodovia Presidente Dutra, (BR-116 – or SP-060 in the state of São Paulo), colloquially known as Via Dutra is a federal highway which runs through the eastern part of the state of São Paulo and southwestern region of the state of Rio ...

and

Paraty Paraty (or Parati, ) is a preserved Portuguese colonial (1500–1822) and Brazilian Imperial (1822–1889) municipality with a population of about 43,000. The name "Paraty" originates from the local Guaianá Indians' indigenous Tupi language, ...

, been a good place to stopover. Parts of this road was part of

Estrada Real Estrada Real (, ''Royal Road'') was an epithet applied to the roads built and maintained by the Portuguese Crown both in Portugal itself and in the Portuguese Empire, Portuguese overseas territories. Presently it is used to designate a set of ...

, which was used to carry gold and precious gems from Minas Gerais to Paraty port to be exported, what explain the historical importance of the city.

Population history

Demographics

According to the 2000

IBGE The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (; IBGE) is the agency responsible for official collection of statistical, geographic, cartographic, geodetic and environmental information in Brazil. IBGE performs a decennial national cen ...

Census, the population was 23,090, of which 11,134 or 48.22% are urban and 11,936 or (51.69%) are rural. The average life expectancy was 71.69 years. The fertility rate was at 2.41.

Media

In telecommunications, the city was served by Companhia de Telecomunicações do Estado de São Paulo until 1975, when it began to be served by Telecomunicações de São Paulo. In July 1998, this company was acquired by Telefónica, which adopted the Vivo brand in 2012. The company is currently an operator of cell phones, fixed lines, internet (fiber optics/4G) and television (satellite and cable).

Tourist attractions

Historical buildings

* Church Nossa Senhora da Conceição (Praça Cônego Siqueira s/n) * Church Rosário (Praça do Rosário s/n) * School Dr. Casemiro da Rocha (Rua Dr. Casemiro da Rocha, 205) * Mercado Municipal (Rua Dom Lino, 118) * Sobrado à Praça Coronel João Olímpio, 52 (Former Council City and City Hall) Handcrafts * Casa do Artesão (Rua Jose Arantes Filho, 27)

Falls

* Cachoeira da Barra * Cachoeira do Barracão * Cachoeira do Desterro * Cachoeira do Jericó * Cachoeira do Mato Limpo * Cachoeira do Pimenta * Cachoeira do Paraibuna * Cachoeira do Paraitinga Some of these falls which you can swim on them.

Overlook point

* Pedra da Macela (where it is possible to see all the sea between Ubatuba and Angra dos Reis)

References

External links

Official city hall webpage

citybrazil.com.br

Municipalities in Vale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte {{MesoregionSãoJosédosCampos-geo-stub