O Amapá is one of the states of Northern region of Brazil, located in two hemispheres: North and South. The state borders:
- For, west and south
- French Guiana and Suriname, northwest
- Atlantic Ocean, north and east
- mouth of ryo Amazons, east and southeast
Read too: Southern Region – the smallest Brazilian region, saysgoing with only three states
History of Amapá
The first colonization incursions in the territory of Amapá took place in 1499, when the first European, Vicente Yáñez Pinzón, sailed through the rivers of bowl THEAmazonian. At the time, Pinzón managed to navigate to the present-day Oiapoque River, which, at the time, was named after the European.
However, the territory of Amapá has already it was occupied by natives of various ethnicities.: palikur, maraca-cunani and tucuju are some examples.
At the time when Pinzón explored those lands, they belonged to Spain, thanks to Treaty of Tordesillas, signed between that country and Portugal for the possession of future American lands. In the eighteenth century, with the signing of a series of treaties between the two countries, such as the Madrid Treaty (1750), the Portuguese occupation of the region in fact began.
Some towns and cities were founded in order to populate and develop the region., such as village of São José de Macapá (1758) and Vila de Nova Mazagão (1770). These two villages have turned into big cities over the years. In the 19th century, Macapá and Mazagão, with their respective populations, participated in a revolt that took place in the Regency Period, the cabin, between 1835 and 1840.
Years later, in the 1850s, the current territory of Amapá became the target of political dispute between France and the Brazilian government. This dispute already came from previous years, but it became even more intense in the second half of the 19th century.
This political conflict was only ended in 1900, when the Swiss Eduard Miller gave the positive approval for Brazil, which annexed about 260 thousand km² of territory.
In the 20th century, in 1943, the federal territory of Amapá was created, with joint administration of the federal government and the state of Pará. With the 1988 Constitution, this territory ceased to exist, passing to the status of a federative unit. Thereby, on January 1, 1991, the state of Amapá was established.
Note some selected data from this brand new state, consulted at the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
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Amapá general data
- Region: North
- capital: Macapa
- Areaterritorial: 142,470,762 km²
- Population: 861,773 people (IBGE, 2020)
- Densitydemographic: 4.69 inhab/km² (IBGE, 2010)
- IndexinDevelopmentHuman(HDI): 0.708 (IBGE, 2010)
- spindle: GMT – 3 hours, same time zone as Brasília
- Climate: Superhumid Equatorial, with two defined seasons (summer and winter) and high rainfall (average of 2500 mm per year)
Amapá geography
O climate from the state of Amapá, hot and super humid, provides that the vegetation of the equatorial forest, such as theAmazon rainforest, which occupies more than 70% of the territory of Amapá. On the coast, the presence of mangroves, a vegetation that protects the banks of the rivers that flow into the Atlantic and supports families in the region.
already the relief is composed mostly of low altitudes. Located in points of the Guyana Plateau, Amapá presents few terrains with steep slopes. To get an idea of the predominance of plains in the state, the highest altitude point is the Mountain range of Tumucumaque, with 701 m. This mountain houses the Tumucumaque Indigenous Park, an important environmental preservation area in the region.
In hydrography, the Amazon and Oiapoque rivers, the largest in the state. Approximately 40% of Amapá is bathed by the Amazon basin. Due to the enormous vegetation cover present in the state, rivers represent an important means of transport, in addition to contributing to the economy and feeding the population with fishing, tourism and leisure.
See too:What are the hydrographic basins in Brazil?
Map of Amapá
Note, on the map below, the location of the state of Amapá in relation to the national territory.
Demographics of Amapá
The population of Amapá has 861,773 people, according to IBGE estimates in 2020, with 512 thousand just in the capital, Macapá. the state presents many immigrants from countries bordering Brazil, such as Venezuela, French Guiana and Suriname, with great expression in Oiapoque, a city in the extreme north of Amapá.
Amapá geographic division
The state of Amapá has four subdivisions — Oiapoque, Amapá, Macapá and Mazagão — which concentrate 16 municipalities. Look at the list of municipalities in the state and then the map with the four territorial subdivisions.
Municipalities, in alphabetical order:
1. Amapá
2. Calçoene
3. Agoutis
4. Ferreira Gomes
5. Itaubal
6. Jarí orangery
7. Macapa
8. Mazagão
9. Oiapoque
10. White Stone of Amapari
11. Porto Grande
12. Pracuuba
13. Santana
14. Serra do Navio
15. turtle
16. Jari's victory
Map with the territorial division of the state:
Amapá Economy
Of the three sectors of the economy (primary, secondary and tertiary), the one that stands out the most in the Amapá economy is the tertiary, with trade, goods and services representing about 85% of the state's economy.
O primary sector has little expression, with emphasis on the production of Brazil nuts, rice, cassava, beans and corn, mostly in establishments that practice family farming. In cattle raising, the state has just over 36 thousand heads of cattle, something tiny if compared to other Brazilian states, such as Mato Grosso, which owns more than 24 million.
There is extraction of wood and some ores, like manganese, in Serra do Navio, and gold, in Calçoene, but in a timid way. As for wood, a large part is made illegally, something harmful to native populations living in the extraction areas.
At the secondary sector, which participates with just over 10% of the state's economy, the highlight goes to the city of Santana, which has a small industrial district.
Also access: Third Industrial Revolution – innovations and developments
Amapá Infrastructure
The territory of Amapá has two federal highways: BR-156 and BR-210. The first is part of a daring project of territorial integration between Brazil, Guyana, French Guiana and Suriname, and is called the Transguianense Highway. It intends to interconnect the four countries, with a length of 2300 kilometers.
BR-210, also known as Perimetral Norte, crosses the state from east to west, with 470 kilometers in length. There is a binational bridge over the Oiapoque river linking Brazil and French Guiana, demonstrating a partnership between the two countries in the far north of Brazil.
Blackout in Macapa
In November 2020, the state suffered a power outage which left a large part of it without electricity for 25 days, between rotations and constant falls, harming the population, who lost electronics and food, creating chaos throughout the territory.
According to the state's Military Police, over the 25 days there were more than 120 protests in Amapá, in an atmosphere of upheaval and revolt among the people of Amapá. It was the biggest blackout in the history of Brazil.
By Attila Matthias
Geography teacher
