Mazagão (, ) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

located in the south of the state of

Amapá Amapá (; ) is one of the 26 federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil. It is in the North Region, Brazil, North Region of Brazil. It is Federative units of Brazil#List, the second-least populous state and the eighteenth-largest state by area ...

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 ...

. Its population is 22,053 and its area is .

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 El Jadida, Mazagão in Morocco. Mazagão Velho is known for the Festival of ...

located in the municipality of Mazagão is known for the Festival of

São Tiago São Tiago is a Brazilian Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the state of Minas Gerais. As of 2020 its population is estimated to be 10,960. Geography The municipality belongs to the Immediate Geographic Region of São João del-Rei, in ...

which takes place between 16 and 28 July, and re-enacts the war between the Moors and Christians.

Overview

The city was named after the Portuguese colony Mazagão in North Africa, now

El Jadida El Jadida (, ) is a major port city on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, located south of the city of Casablanca, in the province of El Jadida and the region of Casablanca-Settat. It has a population of 170,956 as of 2023. The fortified city, b ...

(

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

), in which the Portuguese got kicked in 1769 after some 250 years of occupation. Many of its inhabitants were evacuated to Brazil, where they founded a new settlement ''Nova Mazagão'', now known as ''

''. A total of 340 families arrived in the city of Belém in 1770 and in 1773 went to Nova Mazagão. One of the main theories on the origin of the name of Mazagaon - one of the original

Seven Islands of Bombay The Seven Islands of Bombay ( Portuguese: ''Ilhas de Bom Baim'') were 16th-century Portuguese colonial possessions lying off the Konkan region by the mid-west coast of India. History They were partly handed over to England under this tit ...

and still a historic neighborhood of

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

- derives this name, too, from the Moroccan city, since both were under Portuguese rule in the same time. Mazagão Velho started to decline and Novo do Anauerapucú started become the bigger town. The town of Anauerapucú became the capital of an independent municipality in 1915, and was renamed Mazagão. Mazagão can be reached by the AP-010 from

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...

and

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimate), and is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region, Brazil, North Region, located on the northern channel of the Amazon Delta near its mouth on the Atlant ...

Geography

The municipality contains 44% of the Rio Cajari Extractive Reserve, created in 1990. It contains 19% of the Rio Iratapuru Sustainable Development Reserve, created in 1997. It contains part of the Jari Ecological Station. It also contains 8.56% of the

Amapá State Forest The Amapá State Forest () is a state forest in the state of Amapá, Brazil. Location The Amapá State Forest is divided between the municipalities of Tartarugalzinho (7.64%), Pracuúba (4.52%), Porto Grande (7.72%), Oiapoque (24.15%), Mazagã ...

, a sustainable use conservation unit established in 2006.

Economy

Mazagão is known for its pottery and ceramics. A major part of the economy is based on livestock in particular cattle and buffalo, and forestry centred around the

Brazil nut The Brazil nut (''Bertholletia excelsa'') is a South American tree in the family Lecythidaceae, and it is also the name of the tree's commercially harvested edible seeds. It is one of the largest and longest-lived trees in the Amazon rainforest. ...

and

rubber tree ''Hevea brasiliensis'', the Pará rubber tree, ''sharinga'' tree, seringueira, or most commonly, rubber tree or rubber plant, is a flowering plant belonging to the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, originally native to the Amazon basin, but is now p ...

Subdivions

The municipality of Mazagão is subdivided in three districts: * The town of Mazagão * Carvão *

References

External links

Official site
(in Portuguese) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mazagao Municipalities in Amapá Populated places in Amapá Populated places established in 1773