Santo Antônio do Descoberto is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in central

Goiás Goiás () is a Brazilian States of Brazil, state located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. Goiás borders the Federal District (Brazil), Federal District and the states of (from north clockwise) Tocantins, Bahia, Minas Ge ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Location

Santo Antônio do Descoberto is located in the microregion called Entorno do Distrito Federal, the area of Goiás that surrounds the Federal District. It is 174 kilometers from the state capital,

Goiânia Goiânia ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian federative units of Brazil, state of Goiás. With a population of 1,536,097, it is the second-largest city in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West Region and the 10th-larges ...

. Municipal boundaries are with: *North:

Águas Lindas de Goiás Águas or Aguas may refer to: Places * Dos Aguas, a municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain * Aguas, municipality in Aragon, Spain * Palace of the Marqués de Dos Aguas, a Rococo palace in Valencia, Spain People People with this surname in ...

*South:

Luziânia Luziânia is a municipality in the state of Goiás, Brazil. This city is a producer of agricultural products, including soybeans and beans. Geography Location Luziânia is located 68km south of Brasília and is part of the area, called Entorno d ...

*West:

Cocalzinho de Goiás Cocalzinho de Goiás is a municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. Location and geography Cocalzinho, as it is known by the inhabitants, is located in the micro-region of Entorno do Distrito Federal, on highway BR-414, almost at the junction ...

, Corumbá de Goiás, and

Alexânia Alexânia is a municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. The Areias River passes through the municipality. Location It is located on the main Brasília–Goiânia highway, GO-060, which has been recently widened to four lanes. The distance ...

*East:

Federal District A federal district is a specific administrative division in one of various federations. These districts may be under the direct jurisdiction of a federation's national government, as in the case of federal territory (e.g., India, Malaysia), or the ...

and Novo Gama

Economy

The economy is based on agriculture, cattle raising, services, public administration, and small transformation industries. There were 02 financial institutions in August 2007. The cattle herd had 31,000 head (2006) and the main crops planted were rice, sugarcane, beans, bananas, oranges, manioc, and corn (1,200 hectares 2006)) Agricultural data 2006 *Farms: 532 *Total area: 27,819 ha. *Area of permanent crops: 1,203 ha. *Area of perennial crops: 3,502 ha. *Area of natural pasture: 15,906 ha. *Area of woodland and forests: 9,580 ha. *Persons dependent on farming: 1,450 *Number of tractors: 66
IBGE

Health and education

*Higher education: Pólo Universitário da UEG. *Adult literacy rate: 85.7% (2000) (national average was 86.4%) *Hospitals: 2 with 77 beds (2007) *Infant mortality rate: 26.65 (2000) (national average was 33.0) *

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income i ...

: 0.709 (2000) *State ranking: 199 (out of 242 municipalities) *National ranking: 2,843 (out of 5,507 municipalities
Frigoletto

Tourism

The municipality attracts visitors to its waterfalls, caves and springs of crystal-clear water. Two of the water falls, lying 5 kilometers from the town, are surrounded by dense tropical vegetation, contrasting with the relatively dry cerrado nearby. Ten kilometers from the town is Cidade Eclética, a nucleus of people who make up a universal fraternity, a spiritualist community founded by Oceano de Sá, known as Mestre Yokaanam. The traditional festival of Santo Antônio do Descoberto is in homage to the patron saint and takes place on 13 June. It attracts thousands of pilgrims and followers of the saint and there are stands, processions and music.

History

The history of European occupation of the region of Santo Antônio goes back to 1726 when, according to tradition, slaves belonging a Portuguese gold seeker sat down to rest and supposedly discovered an image of Santo Antônio in the branches of a tree. They took it to their master and a chapel was built in 1728. Soon the site became a place of pilgrimage attracting people from near and far. After a time the festivals disappeared and the town continued with the name of Santo Antônio de Montes Claros, district of

. In 1982 it got its emancipation and took the present name honoring the saint and the river that flows through the region.

References

External links

Frigoletto
Municipalities in Goiás {{Goiás-geo-stub