GauchoA gaucho (ˈɡawtʃo) or gaúcho (ɡaˈuʃu) is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, southern part of Bolivia and the south of Chilean Patagonia. Gauchos became greatly admired and renowned in legend, folklore, and literature and became an important part of their regional cultural tradition. Beginning late in the 19th century, after the heyday of the gauchos, they were celebrated by South American writers.
CharrúaThe Charrúa were an indigenous people or Indigenous Nation of the Southern Cone in present-day Uruguay and the adjacent areas in Argentina (Entre Ríos) and Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul). They were a semi-nomadic people who sustained themselves mainly through hunting and gathering. Since resources were not permanent in every region, they would constantly be on the move. Rain, drought, and other environmental factors determined their movement. For this reason they are often classified as seasonal nomads.
PelotasPelotas (peˈlɔtɐs) is a Brazilian city and municipality (município), the fourth most populous in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, after Porto Alegre, Caxias do Sul and Canoas. It is located 270 km (168 mi) from Porto Alegre, the state's capital city, and 130 km (80.8 mi) from the Uruguayan border. The Lagoa dos Patos lies to the east and the São Gonçalo Channel lies to the south, separating Pelotas from the city of Rio Grande.
History of the Jews in BrazilThe history of the Jews in Brazil begins during the settlement of Europeans in the new world. Although only baptized Christians were subject to the Inquisition, Jews started settling in Brazil when the Inquisition reached Portugal, in the 16th century. They arrived in Brazil during the period of Dutch rule, setting up in Recife the first synagogue in the Americas, the Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue, as early as 1636. Most of those Jews were Sephardic Jews who had fled the Inquisition in Spain and Portugal to the religious freedom of the Netherlands.
Luiz Inácio Lula da SilvaLuiz Inácio Lula da Silva (luˈiz iˈnasju ˈlulɐ dɐ ˈsiwvɐ; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), also known as Lula da Silva or simply Lula, is a Brazilian politician who is the 39th and current president of Brazil. A member of the Workers' Party, he previously served as the 35th president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010. Of working-class origin, Lula migrated as a child from Pernambuco to São Paulo with his family. As a teenager, he began his career as a metalworker and became a trade unionist.
Operation CondorOperation Condor (Operación Cóndor, also known as Plan Cóndor; Operação Condor) was a United States-backed campaign of political repression and state terrorism involving intelligence operations, CIA-backed coup d'états, as well as assassinations of left-wing socialist leaders in South America from 1968 to 1989. Operation Condor was officially and formally implemented in November 1975 by the right-wing dictatorships of the Southern Cone of South America.
BraziliansBrazilians (Brasileiros, bɾaziˈlejɾus) are the citizens of Brazil. A Brazilian can also be a person born abroad to a Brazilian parent or legal guardian as well as a person who acquired Brazilian citizenship. Brazil is a multiethnic society, which means that it is home to people of many ethnic origins, and there is no correlation between one's stock and their Brazilian identity. Being Brazilian is a civic phenomenon, rather than an ethnic one.
JoinvilleJoinville (ʒoĩˈvil(j)i) is the largest city in Santa Catarina, in the Southern Region of Brazil. It is the third largest municipality in the southern region of Brazil, after the much larger state capitals of Curitiba and Porto Alegre. Joinville is also a major industrial, financial and commerce center. The city has a very high human development index (0.809) among Brazilian municipalities, occupying the 21st national position. One study pointed to Joinville as the second best city to live in Brazil.
UmbandaUmbanda (ũˈbɐ̃dɐ) is an Afro-Brazilian religion that emerged in Rio de Janeiro in the 1920s. Deriving largely from Spiritism, it also combines elements from Afro-Brazilian traditions like Candomblé as well as Roman Catholicism. There is no central authority in control of Umbanda, which is organized around autonomous places of worship termed centros or terreiros. Umbanda has many branches, each one with a different set of beliefs and practices. Some common beliefs are the existence of a Supreme Being and creator of the universe known as Olodumare.
PampasThe Pampas (from the pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazil's southernmost state, Rio Grande do Sul. The vast plains are a natural region, interrupted only by the low Ventana and Tandil hills, near Bahía Blanca and Tandil (Argentina), with a height of and , respectively.