NATAL
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Natal, is a city located in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 712.317.
Geography
Natal is located at 5° 46' South, 35° 12' West, in the far northeast of South America. The city has a total area of 170 km². Natal lies on the Atlantic Ocean, by the mouth of the Potengi river. |
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History
The northeastern tip of South America, cape Sao Roque, 20 miles to the north
of Natal, was first visited by European navigators in 1501, in the 1501-1502
Portuguese expedition led by Amerigo Vespucci, who named the spot after the
saint of the day. For decades thereafter, no permanent European settlement
was established in the area, inhabited by the Potiguar tribe.
In 1597, after some years during which French pirates, led by Jacques
Riffault, established regular commercial activities with the native
population, the ninth Portuguese Governor-General of Brazil, Francisco de
Sousa, ordered the expulsion of the buccaneers. The successful expedition
was led by the Captain-Major of the Captaincy of Pernambuco, Manuel de
Mascarenhas Homem, with the assistance of Jerônimo de Albuquerque Maranhão.
Albuquerque Maranhão began on January 6, 1598 the construction of the Fort
of the Holy Kings or of the Magi-Kings ("Forte dos Santos Reis" or "Forte
dos Reis Magos"), named after the Three Wise Men, honored in the Christian
feast of the Epiphany, celebrated on that day.
On December 25, 1599, Natal (whose name means Nativity or Christmas in
Portuguese) was established as a village outside the fort.
Economics
Besides Natal been a touristic city, it's also a center of universities, and
an industrial city (mainly about fabrics). |
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