Porto Alegre (lit. "Joyous Port" or "Happy Harbor", pronunciation (help·info)) is the eleventh most populous municipality in Brazil and the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian state. Porto Alegre is one of the most important cultural, political and economic centers of Southern Brazil. Two Mercosur countries, Argentina and Uruguay, border Rio Grande do Sul....
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Porto Alegre (lit. "Joyous Port" or "Happy Harbor", pronunciation (help·info)) is the eleventh most populous municipality in Brazil and the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian state. Porto Alegre is one of the most important cultural, political and economic centers of Southern Brazil. Two Mercosur countries, Argentina and Uruguay, border Rio Grande do Sul. It is also the centre of Brazil's fifth largest metropolitan area.
Porto Alegre was founded in 1742 by immigrants from the Azores, Portugal. In the late 19th century the city received many immigrants from other parts of the world, particularly Germany, Italy, and Poland. The vast majority of the population is of European descent.
The city lies on the eastern bank of the Rio Guaiba (Guaiba Lake), where five rivers converge to form the Lagoa dos Patos (Lagoon of the Ducks), a giant freshwater lagoon navigable by even the largest of ships. This...
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