Blumenau

For other uses, see Blumenau (disambiguation).
Blumenau

Itajaí-Açu river seen from the surroundings of Garcia's stream mouth; city centre at left

Flag
Seal
Nickname(s): Cidade Jardim ("Garden City") and Alemanha Tropical ("Tropical Germany")

Location in the state of Santa Catarina and Brazil
Coordinates: 26°55′08″S 49°03′57″W / 26.91889°S 49.06583°W / -26.91889; -49.06583
Country Brazil
Region South
State Santa Catarina
Founded September 2, 1850
Government
 • Mayor Napoleão Bernardes (2013-2017)
Area
 • Total 519.837 km2 (200.710 sq mi)
Elevation 21 m (69 ft)
Population (2010 est)[1]
 • Total 309,214
 • Density 594.83/km2 (1,540.6/sq mi)
Time zone GMT-3
Postal code 89000-000
Area code(s) +55 47
Website http://www.blumenau.sc.gov.br

Blumenau is a city in Vale do Itajaí, state of Santa Catarina, in the South Region of Brazil. It is 130 km (81 mi) away from the state capital of Florianópolis.

History

The city was founded on September 2, 1850, by Dr. Hermann Bruno Otto Blumenau along with seventeen German immigrants. Later arrivals include biologist and early proponent of Darwinian Evolution, Fritz Müller.

Demographics

As of 2006, Blumenau had an estimated population of 302,000 people, with an area of 519 km² (200 sq mi). The main ethnic origin of the city inhabitants are German and Italian.[2] The city displays many historical and cultural reminders of their heritage, such as houses and other buildings built in a traditional German style, statues, and memorials.

Blumenau, compared to other Brazilian cities, has a very high standard of living, with a Human Development Index of 0.855 as of 2000.[3]

Ethnic composition

Race/Skin color Percentage Number
Whites 94.55% 247,527
Pardos (Mixed-race) 3.50% 9,171
Blacks 1.16% 3,042
Amerindians 0.13% 340
Asian 0.10% 252

Source: IBGE 2000.[4]

Religion

Religion Percentage Number
Catholics 73.90% 193,474
Protestants 22.13% 57,935
No religion 1.22% 3,200
Kardecists 0.72% 1,894

IBGE. Census 2000.[5]

Geography

Parque Nacional da Serra do Itajaí

The city is located in a valley bisected by the Itajaí-Açu River, surrounded by hills with forests. The lower areas, including towers and tall buildings in the city center, constantly suffer from the threat of floods. Blumenau's first recorded flood took place in the dawn on September 23, 1880. The worst took place in 1983 and 1984, when the city was completely isolated for weeks. Today, Blumenau is well-prepared against such threats, but many citizens prefer to live in higher areas spread into the nearby hills and plains to avoid flooding. However, this planning could not avoid an even worse flooding in late November 2008, that killed over 100 and forced thousands to evacuate.

Blumenau's downtown

Climate

Blumenau
Climate chart (explanation)
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
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29
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Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: Weather Underground

The climate of Blumenau is considered to be subtropical, a climate of transition between the predominantly tropical climate of Brazil and the predominantly temperate climate of Argentina. Under the Köppen climate classification, the city has a warm, humid subtropical climate.

Blumenau, like the entire state of Santa Catarina is located south of the Tropic of Capricorn; therefore it is mild in the winter with temperatures averaging 16.6 °C (61 °F) and warm and humid in the summer with temperatures averaging around 30 °C (87 °F). In July 23, 2013 the downtown of the city got a snow-rain mix and higher neighborhoods had accumulating snow.[6]

Economy

Blumenau's main economic activity is still the textile industry, responsible for large manufacturers such as Cia. Hering, Karsten and Teka.

Another area of focus is that of information technology, and the city the headquarters of the so-called Valley of the software, and many software leaders in its segment, some of whom were born in Blusoft and Instituto Gene, incubators of companies in the sector.

Blumenau is also emphasized in other industrial sectors such as metallurgical, mechanical and electrical equipment.

It has a strong economy, boosted by strong trade, service and tourism events, with exhibitions of international projection, which are generally held in Vila Germânica (Germanic Ville Park). Additionally, a new but rapidly expanding market is the production of beer craft, such as Eisenbahn.

Transport

Even though Blumenau has its own airport, normally passengers use scheduled flights operated from Ministro Victor Konder International Airport, located in the nearby municipality of Navegantes. Gol Airlines[7] and Azul Brazilian Airlines[8] offer for its passengers free bus transfers between Navegantes and Blumenau at regular times.

Tourism

Carlos Gomes Theater
Moellmann House in Blumenau
Downtown Blumenau

The Blumenau's Tourism Department maintains four tour routes covering different aspects of the city. Besides these, there's the festival of the municipality. Also, the Oktoberfest of Blumenau, held every October, which attracts over a million tourists every year.

Divisions

Blumenau has 2 districts and 33 neighbourhoods:

  • Vila Itoupava (District)
  • Itoupava Central
  • Itoupavazinha
  • Testo Salto
  • Badenfurt
  • Salto do Norte
  • Salto
  • Fidélis
  • Fortaleza Alta
  • Salto Weissbach
  • Fortaleza
  • Tribess
  • Nova Esperança
  • Itoupava Norte
  • Boa Vista
  • Itoupava Seca
  • Escola Agrícola
  • Passo Manso
  • Água Verde
  • Velha
  • Velha Central
  • Velha Grande
  • Vila Nova
  • Victor Konder
  • Ponta Aguda
  • Vorstadt
  • Centro (Downtown)
  • Bom Retiro
  • Vila Formosa
  • Jardim Blumenau
  • Ribeirão Fresco
  • Garcia (District)
  • Glória
  • Valparaíso
  • Progresso

Notable inhabitants

Actress Vera Fischer is from Blumenau

Twin towns – Sister cities

Blumenau is twinned with:

See also

References

  1. ↑ IBGE – Estimativas 2007 / Contagem da População 2007
  2. ↑ Archived April 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ↑ "Ranking decrescente do IDH-M dos municípios do Brasil". Atlas do Desenvolvimento Humano. Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento (PNUD). 2000. Archived from the original on 3 October 2009. Retrieved 11 October 2008.
  4. ↑ "Sistema IBGE de Recuperação Automática - SIDRA". ibge.gov.br.
  5. ↑ "Sistema IBGE de Recuperação Automática - SIDRA". ibge.gov.br.
  6. ↑ "Neve é registrada em cinco pontos de Blumenau". Jornal de Santa Catarina.
  7. ↑ "Local Transportation-Navegantes". Gol Airlines. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
  8. ↑ "Ônibus Executivo/Blumenau-Aeroporto de Navegantes" (in Portuguese). Azul Brazilian Airlines. Retrieved 27 March 2011.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blumenau.

Coordinates: 26°56′S 49°03′W / 26.933°S 49.050°W / -26.933; -49.050

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/19/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.