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Piracicaba
Municipality
Flag Coat of arms
Location in São Paulo state
Piracicaba Location in Brazil
Coordinates: 22°43′31″S 47°38′57″W / 22.72528°S 47.64917°W / -22.72528; -47.64917Coordinates: 22°43′31″S 47°38′57″W / 22.72528°S 47.64917°W / -22.72528; -47.64917
Country	Brazil
Region	Southeast
State	São Paulo
Government
• Mayor	Barjas Negri (PSDB)
Area
• Total	1,378.07 km2 (532.08 sq mi)
Elevation	547 m (1,795 ft)
Population (2015)
• Total	391,449
• Density	280/km2 (740/sq mi)
Time zone	BRT/BRST (UTC-3/-2)
Postal code	13400-000
Website	www.piracicaba.sp.gov.br

Piracicaba (Portuguese pronunciation: [piɾɐsiˈkabɐ] or [piˌɾasiˈkabɐ]) is a city located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The population is 391,449 (2015 est.) in an area of 1378.07 km².^[1] It is at an elevation of 547 m above sea level.

Name

The place name comes from a word in the Tupi language that means "place where the fish stops".^[2] The name arises from the fact that the waterfalls of the Piracicaba River, which bisects the city, is a point at which "piracema"—fish swimming upstream to reproduce.^[3] Larger fish species such as the dourados can still be observed.^{[citation needed]}

History

In 1766, Antonio Correa Barbosa, charged with the task of establishing a settlement on the estuary of Piracicaba river, opted for a location about 90 km from it.^[4] The settlement was officially founded on August 1, 1767, as a povoação subordinated to the vila of Itu.^[2] In 1784, Piracicaba gets emancipated from Itu, becoming a freguesia.^[2]

In 1821, the freguesia is promoted to vila, known as Vila Nova da Constituição. In 1856, Vila Nova da Constituição is promoted to city status and in 1877 it is officially named "Piracicaba", following a law by the then councilman and future Brazilian president Prudente de Morais.^[2]

In 1944, the city was made the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Piracicaba.^[5]

Notable institutions, events, resources

Piracicaba is home to the oldest agricultural university in Brazil, the Luiz de Queiroz School of Agriculture of the University of São Paulo.^[6] Founded in 1901, the school is located on a farm with a large collection of trees and plants.^{[citation needed]} It is also recognized as a leader in the field of precision agriculture.^{[citation needed]} Other universities based in Piracicaba are the Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP)^[7] and the University of Campinas' School of Dentistry.^[8]

Piracicaba is known by the nickname "Noiva da Colina" (bride of the hills),^[9] and is the annual host to the "Festa das Nações" (Nations' Party, where people may find foods from all over the world),^[10] and to the "Salão Internacional do Humor" (International Humor Exhibition), where cartoonists from around the world display comic drawings.^[11][12]

Economy

Upscale houses in the city

Avenues in Piracicaba

Piracicaba is famous for sugarcane plantations,^[13] traditional cachaça production,^{[citation needed]} and traditional music.^{[citation needed]}

In particular, its economy, as of this year,^[when?] is fueled by the cultivation of sugarcane.^{[citation needed]} The harvest of sugarcane produces many products, including sugar, oil, and ethanol.^[14]Copersucar, a large company that has a center of research on genetic improvement of sugarcane participates in this growing industry.^{[citation needed]}

Another characteristic economic feature is the presence of large industries, where the main ones are Caterpillar,^[15]ArcelorMittal,^[16] and Hyundai.^[17]

Farms

Geography

Piracicaba's altitude is 554 meters.^[18] Temperatures through the year vary from 37.5° Celsius maximum to 16.0° Celsius minimum,^{[citation needed]} and Piracicaba experiences annual rainfall of 123 centimeters.^{[citation needed]} The area of the city is 1,378 square kilometers, making it the 19th largest city in the State of São Paulo.^{[citation needed]} The urban area of Piracicaba is approximately 158 square kilometers, and 95% of the population resides in it.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

The population in 2015 was 391,449.^[1] The Human Development Index for the city was 0.710 in 2000, and 0.785 in 2010, both falling in the "high" category.^[19]

Utilities

As of 2010, water and power are supplied at a level approaching 100% of the households.^[20] As of 2013 there were approximately 164 telephones,^{[clarification needed][citation needed]} and 333 cars,^{[citation needed]} both statistics per thousand people.

Religion

Like the cultural variety in Piracicaba, there are several religious manifestations in the city. It is possible to find in the city dozens of different Protestant denominations, as well as the practice of Buddhism, Islamism, Spiritism, and others. In the last decades, Buddhism and Eastern religions have grown in the city. There also are the Jewish, Mormon and Afro-Brazilian religions. According to data from the 2010 Census conducted by the IBGE, the population of Piracicaba was composed that year by Catholics (59.78%), Evangelicals (27.42%), no religious affiliation (7.47%), Spiritist (2.9%) and Jehovah's Witnesses (0.95%). The remaining 2.09% of the resident population declared themselves of other denominations or of undetermined religion.

Source: IBGE - Census 2010

Notable natives

• 
  José Altafini, also known as "Mazola", a Brazilian footballer.


• 
  André Cypriano, documentary photographer
  


• 
  Evaristo Conrado Engelberg, engineer and inventor


• 
  Marcos Pizzelli-Brazilian footballer.


• 
  Rubens Ometto Silveira Mello, owner of Cosan.

References

External links