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Belo Horizonte
Columbia Encyclopedia entry: Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizontebəl′oorēzôN'tĭ [Port.,=beautiful horizon], city (1996 pop. 2,091,770), capital of Minas Gerais state, E Brazil. The distribution and processing center of a rich agricultural and mining region, Belo Horizonte is the nucleus of a burgeoning industrial complex; its chief industries are furniture, textiles, food processing, and publishing. Belo Horizonte is also a transportation hub, with direct highway connections with Brasília, São Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro. A small airport is located in Pampulha, a suburb. Belo Horizonte was Brazil's first planned metropolis and was built (1895–97) to replace Ouro Prêto as the state capital. With its wide, tree-lined avenues, skyscrapers, and spacious parks, and with its beautiful surroundings and bracing climate, Belo Horizonte is a fashionable resort. It is also a leading cultural center, with a historical museum, three universities, and numerous libraries and sports stadiums. The Chapel of São Francisco, with paintings by Candido Portinari, is famous.

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Columbia Encyclopedia search results: Belo Horizonte
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  • Minas Gerais

    Minas Gerais [Port.,=various mines], state (1996 pop. 16,660,691), 226,707 sq mi (587,171 sq km), E Brazil. The capital is Belo Horizonte. Minas Gerais continues to produce more than half of B...

  • Furnas Dam

    Furnas Dam, c.390 ft (120 m) high, at the junction of the Rio Grande and Sapucaí rivers, SE Brazil, in Minas Gerais state; completed 1962. It has a 620-sq mi (1,606-sq km) reservoir. It includ...

  • Ouro Prêto

    Ouro Prêto [Port.,=black gold], city (1996 pop. 61,606), Minas Gerais state, E Brazil. Founded as Vila Rica in the gold rush near the end of the 17th cent., it became a prosperous 18th-century...

  • Niemeyer Soares, Oscar

    Niemeyer Soares, Oscar, 1907–, Brazil's foremost 20th-century architect, b. Rio de Janeiro. Influenced by Le Corbusier, Niemeyer developed an architecture noted for its daring conception, puri...

  • Brazil

    Brazil, Port. Brasil, officially Federative Republic of Brazil, republic (2005 est. pop. 186,113,000), 3,286,470 sq mi (8,511,965 sq km), E South America. By far the largest of the Latin Ameri...

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