MARANHO

estado (state) of northern Brazil, situated south of the Equator and to the southeast of the Amazon River basin. About two-thirds of its area consists of a low, heavily wooded region, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north. To the east and southeast lies Piau state, and to the west lie the states of Tocantins and Par. The higher plateaus in the southern section of the state are northeastern extensions of the Brazilian Highlands; the highest point, the Serra da Cinta, is 4,373 feet (1,333 m) in elevation. From these highlands a number of river systems run generally northeastward into the Atlantic. Several of them form a delta region around the capital city of So Lus, which stands on an island. The delta is bounded to the west by dense mangrove forests and to the east by areas of quicksand. The rivers in the state are navigable for much of their course, cutting through arable soils that support farming and cattle raising, the economic mainstays of Maranho. The climate is hot and moist. There is a wet and a relatively dry season but never a rainless one. Tupinamb Indians inhabited the Maranho region when Europeans first explored the coasts in 1500 and when the region was included in land grants, known as captaincies, made by the Portuguese crown in 1534. In the decades that followed, rival European powers attempted to take possession of the territory. The first settlement was established by the French in 1594; later, in 1612, they also founded a colony on So Lus Island. The French were expelled by the Portuguese in 1615, but the Dutch succeeded in holding So Lus from 1641 to 1644. In 1621 Maranho and adjoining regions were united as the Estado do Maranho, which remained independent of the southern captaincies and of Portuguese colonial administration until 1774, when the territory was formally made part of the Portuguese colony of Brazil. In 1823 Maranho adhered to the newly independent empire of Brazil and, in 1889, to the newly proclaimed republic. Maranho was settled mainly by Jesuit missionaries, who introduced Roman Catholicism to the Tupinambs, along with the pattern of agriculture and cattle-raising that continues to characterize the local economy. The people of Maranho represent a blend of Tupinambs, Europeans (mainly Portuguese), and the descendants of African slaves. There has been considerable racial intermarriage between these groups through the centuries, though in interior regions descendants of the original Indian population, known as caboclos, remain. Portuguese is the main written and spoken language, but it has been enriched by indigenous languages, just as Portuguese culture has been supplemented by local folklore. Most of the population is Roman Catholic. Maranho is an economically underdeveloped region, dependent largely on agriculture and cattle raising. The major industry is the extraction of oils and essences from plants. Palm oils from the babassu nut are a major export item, as is rice. Other important industries include food processing and steel manufacturing, centred in So Lus. There are bauxite deposits on Turiacu Island, and petroleum discoveries have been made in the interior near the Tocantins border and in the northern part of the state. A hydroelectric facility was completed at Boa Esperanca in 1970. Itaqui Quay on So Lus Island is one of several modern shipping points on Maranho's coasts, and the navigable river system permits extensive shipment from ports deep in the interior. A railway 250 miles (400 km) long links So Lus with Teresina, the capital of Piau state; a 554-mile (892-kilometre) line joins So Lus with the state's central and western agricultural regions and with the mineral-producing Carajs region of Par state. The road network is only partially paved. There are several commercial airports, of which the international airport at So Lus is by far the most important. Medical facilities and health standards are relatively good. Occasional outbreaks of tropical disease rarely reach epidemic proportions. The state supports primary, secondary, and university education, in addition to which there are independent colleges, a number of technical institutes, and private educational institutions at lower levels. Cultural institutions include the Historical and Artistic Museum of Maranho and the Maranho Historical and Geographical Institute. The best-known Maranhense writer was Antnio Gonalves Dias (182364), a poet in the Romantic tradition versed in Maranhense lore, whose Song of Exile is renowned. Pop. (1995 est.) 5,231,300.