TAUBAT

city, southeastern So Paulo estado (state), southern Brazil, on the Paraba do Sul River. Founded in the early 17th century by Jacques Flix on the site of a Guaianases Indian village, it was a starting point for many bandeiras (expeditions into the interior). Formed as the village of So Francisco das Chagas de Taubat in 1645, it was chartered as a city in 1842 at the onset of the Paraba valley coffee boom. Remaining an agricultural centre after the boom declined, it also became industrialized. Engines are manufactured there, and dolomite is quarried nearby. The city includes Chcara do Visconde, birthplace of the writer Monteiro Labato, now a historical museum, and it is the seat of a university (1976). Pop. (1980 prelim.) 155,371.