Map of Minas Gerais

History

Part of the history of the current state of Minas Gerais was determined by the exploration of the great mineral wealth found in its territory. Mining began in the 17th century and to this day remains important to the state's economy.

In the mid-19th century, Danish paleontologist Peter Wilhelm Lund discovered, in the Lagoa Santa region, human remains belonging to a population that lived there thousands of years ago, nicknamed the "Lagoa Santa People". The region of Minas Gerais was inhabited by indigenous peoples as long as 11,400 to 12,000 years ago, based on the estimated age of the Luzia woman, the name of the oldest human fossil found in the Americas.

Geography

Minas Gerais features some of the longest rivers in Brazil, most notably the São Francisco, the Paraná and to a lesser extent, the Doce river. The state also holds many hydroelectric power plants, including Furnas. Some of the highest peaks in Brazil are in the mountain ranges in the southern part of the state, such as the Mantiqueira Mountains and Serra do Cervo, that mark the border between Minas and its neighbors São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The most notable one is the Bandeira peak, the third highest mountain in Brazil at 2,890 m, standing on the border with Espírito Santo state. The state also has huge reserves of iron and sizeable reserves of gold and gemstones, including emerald, topaz and aquamarine mines.

Economy

Minas Gerais is the second-largest consumer market in Brazil, behind the state of São Paulo. It shares 10.4% of the Brazilian consumer market. Companies of this Brazilian state have access to 49% of the Brazilian consumer market, with estimated consumption potential of 223 billion US dollars. The service sector is the largest component of GDP at 47.1%, followed by the industrial sector at 44.1%. agriculture represents 8.8% of GDP (2004). Main exports: mineral products 44.4%, metals 15.8%, vegetable products 13%, precious metals 5.5%, foodstuffs 4.9%, transportation 3.5% (2012).

Its share of the Brazilian economy in 2005 was 9%. Minas Gerais had an industrial GDP of R $128.4 billion in 2017, equivalent to 10.7% of the national industry. It employs 1,069,469 workers in the industry.

Demographics

According to the 2022 census, there were 20,539,989 people residing in the state. The population density was 35.02 inhabitants per square kilometre (90.7/sq mi). Urbanization: 85% (2006); Population growth: 1.4% (1991–2000); Houses: 5,731,000 (2006).

The last PNAD (National Research for Sample of Domiciles) census revealed the following numbers: 9,605,151 Brown (Multiracial) people (46.8%), 8,437,697 White people (41.2%), 2,432,877 Black people (9.8%), 31,885 Amerindian people (0.2%), 31,581 Asian people (0.2%).