Blumenau () is a city in Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina state, in the South Region of

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 ...

, from the state capital

Florianópolis Florianópolis () is the capital and second largest city of the state of Santa Catarina (state), Santa Catarina, in the South Region, Brazil, South region of Brazil. The city encompasses Santa Catarina Island and surrounding small islands, as we ...

. The city was founded by the German

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of ...

and

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...

Hermann Blumenau (1819–1899), who arrived on a boat via the Itajaí-Açu River accompanied by seventeen other Germans, and still celebrates its German heritage, including the second largest Oktoberfest in the world.

History

The city was founded September 2, 1850, by Hermann Blumenau and seventeen other German

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

. Later arrivals include biologist and early proponent of

Darwinian Evolution ''Darwinism'' is a term used to describe a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others. The theory states that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural sele ...

Fritz Müller Johann Friedrich Theodor Müller (; 31 March 182221 May 1897), better known as Fritz Müller (), and also as Müller-Desterro, was a German biologist who emigrated to southern Brazil, where he lived in and near the city of Blumenau, Santa Cata ...

. The history of Blumenau is the result of the arrival of German immigrants who settled these fertile areas of the Atlantic Forest. Having an interest in the problems faced by European immigrants, in 1845 Hermann Blumenau reached an agreement with the Society for the Protection of German Emigrants to represent it and traveled to Brazil, aiming to create new German settlements and to check the situation of those that already existed. He traveled to

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, ; ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative units of Brazil#List, fifth-most populous state and the List of Brazilian s ...

, and then to Santa Catarina, where he visited the German colony of São Pedro de Alcântara. Aware of comments about the Itajaí Valley, he explored it in detail, in association with his compatriot Ferdinand Hackradt, since the aforementioned society was dissolved. After taking certain precautions, Hermann Blumenau headed for Germany, to seek immigrants. On September 2, 1850, Hermann Blumenau returned to the chosen area with the seventeen initial immigrants. Despite the floods, clashes with wild animals and even with the

indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

, due to the work of German immigrants willing to migrate continuously in greater numbers, the settlement prospered. Those first immigrants had a great support from the Brazilian government, who gave them land, housing, livestock, seeds, education and healthcare for a very low price and in many cases, entirely free. On February 4, 1880, the

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' ...

of Blumenau was created, composed of about 13,000 residents.

Demographics

, Blumenau had an estimated population of 361,855 people, with an area of 519 km² (200 sq mi). The main ethnic origin of the city inhabitants are German and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

. The city displays many historical and cultural reminders of their heritage, such as houses and other buildings built in traditional German styles, statues, and memorials. Blumenau, compared to other Brazilian cities, has a very high

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 ...

, 0.806 as of 2010.

Ethnic composition

:''Source: 2022 census''

Religion

:''Source: 2010 IBGE Census''

Geography

The city is located in a valley bisected by the Itajaí-Açu River, surrounded by hills with forests. The lower areas, including towers and tall buildings in the city center, constantly suffer from the threat of floods. Blumenau's first recorded flood took place in the dawn on September 23, 1880. The worst took place in 1983 and 1984, when the city was completely isolated for weeks. Today, Blumenau is well-prepared against such threats, but many citizens prefer to live in higher areas spread into the nearby hills and plains to avoid flooding. However, this planning could not avoid even worse

flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant concern in agriculture, civi ...

in late November 2008, that killed over 100 and forced thousands to evacuate.

Climate

The climate of Blumenau is considered to be subtropical, a climate of transition between the predominantly tropical climate of Brazil and the predominantly temperate climate of

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. Under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

, the city has a warm,

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

. Blumenau, like the entire state of Santa Catarina, is located south of the

Tropic of Capricorn The Tropic of Capricorn (or the Southern Tropic) is the circle of latitude that contains the subsolar point at the December (or southern) solstice. It is thus the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. It also reach ...

; therefore it is mild in the winter with temperatures averaging 16.6 °C (61 °F) and hot and humid in the summer with high temperatures averaging around 30 °C (87 °F). On July 23, 2013 the downtown of the city got a snow-rain mix and higher neighborhoods had accumulating snow.

Economy

Blumenau's main economic activity is still the

textile industry The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of textiles: yarn, cloth and clothing. Industry process Cotton manufacturing Cotton is the world's most important natural fibre. In the year 2007, th ...

, represented by large manufacturers such as Cia. Hering, Karsten and Teka. Another area that draws attention is that of

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

; the city is the headquarters of the so-called Brazilian Silicon Valley, and many software leaders in its segment, some of whom were born in Blusoft and Instituto Gene startup incubators. Blumenau is also known as a location for the manufacturing of metallurgic, mechanical, and electrical equipment. It has a strong economy, boosted by strong trade, service, and tourism events, with exhibitions of international importance, which are generally held in ''Vila Germânica'' (German Villa Park). Additionally, a new but rapidly expanding market is the production of craft

beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

, such as Eisenbahn.

Transport

Even though Blumenau is served by Quero-quero Airport, normally passengers use scheduled flights operated from Ministro Victor Konder International Airport, located in the nearby municipality of Navegantes. Gol Airlines, Azul Brazilian Airlines, and Latam offer for its passengers bus transfers between Navegantes and Blumenau at regular times. During Oktoberfest, Azul operates flights at the local airport.

Tourism

The Blumenau's Tourism Department maintains four tour routes covering different aspects of the city. Besides these, there's the festival of the municipality. Also, the Oktoberfest of Blumenau, held every October, attracts over a million tourists every year. Originally begun as a fundraiser to alleviate the devastating floods of 1983 and 1984, the Blumenau Oktoberfest has become the second largest Oktoberfest after Munich.

Subdivisions

Blumenau has 35 neighbourhoods: * Água Verde * Badenfurt * Boa Vista * Bom Retiro *

Centro Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Du ...

* Escola Agrícola * Fidélis *

Fortaleza Fortaleza ( ; ; ) is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeastern Brazil. It is Brazil's 4th largest city—Fortaleza surpassed Salvador, Bahia, Salvador in 2022 census with a population of slightly over 2.4 mi ...

* Fortaleza Alta * Garcia * Glória * Itoupava Central * Itoupava Norte * Itoupava Seca * Itoupavazinha * Jardim Blumenau * Nova Esperança * Passo Manso * Ponta Aguda * Progresso * Ribeirão Fresco * Salto * Salto do Norte * Salto Weissbach * Testo Salto * Tribess *

Valparaíso Valparaíso () is a major city, Communes of Chile, commune, Port, seaport, and naval base facility in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. Valparaíso was originally named after Valparaíso de Arriba, in Castilla–La Mancha, Castile-La Mancha, Spain ...

* Velha * Velha Central * Velha Grande * Victor Konder * Vila Formosa * Vila Itoupava * Vila Nova * Vorstadt

Notable people

* Hermann Blumenau (1819–1899) German pharmacist who founded the city of Blumenau * Emílio Henrique Baumgart (1889 in Blumenau - 1943) architect and engineer *

(1821 – 1897 in Blumenau) biologist, an early advocate of Darwinism * Vera Fischer (born 1951 in Blumenau) actress * Rita Schadrack (1931 in Blumenau – 1988) film, stage, and voice actress * Martin Drewes (1918 – 2013 in Blumenau) Luftwaffe military aviator, night fighter ace in

WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

* Mariana Weickert (born 1972 in Blumenau) model *

João Geraldo Kuhlmann João Geraldo Kuhlmann (1882 Blumenau, Santa Catarina -1958 Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro) was a Brazilian botanist. Life Kuhlmann was a specialist on taxonomy of angiosperms. He was a great collector of herborized material (his collection w ...

(1882 in Blumenau - 1958) a botanist, specialist on the

taxonomy image:Hierarchical clustering diagram.png, 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme o ...

Angiosperm Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed within a fruit ...

s * Luiz Henrique da Silveira (1940 in Blumenau – 2015) politician and lawyer * Edward af Sillén (born 1982 in Blumenau) Swedish screenwriter & director for film and TV *

Armin Zimmermann __NOTOC__ Armin Zimmermann (23 December 1917 – 30 November 1976) was a German admiral and Inspector General of the Bundeswehr from 1 April 1972 until 30 November 1976. He joined the Kriegsmarine in 1937. Awards *German Cross in Gold on 4 March ...

(1917 in Blumenau – 1976) German admiral and Inspector General of the Bundeswehr

Sport

Tiago Splitter Tiago Splitter Beims (born January 1, 1985) is a Brazilian professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A three-time All-EuroLeague Team se ...

, (born 1985 in Blumenau) former professional basketball player * Tiago Volpi, (born 1990 in Blumenau) football goalkeeper * Bruna Pickler, (born 1990 in Blumenau), athlete, actress, composer and sports reporter * Ana Amorim Taleska, (born 1983 in Blumenau) handball player * Christian Maicon Hening, (born 1978 in Blumenau) football player * Eduarda Amorim Taleska, (born 1986 in Blumenau) handball player * Rafael Schmitz, (born 1980 in Blumenau) football player * Barbara Bruch, (born 1987 in Blumenau) female volleyball player * Jean Carlo Witte, (born 1977 in Blumenau) football player * Nathan Allan de Souza, (born 1996 in Blumenau) football player * Teco Padaratz, (born 1971 in Blumenau) former surfer, two-times champion of the WQS.

Twin towns – sister cities

Blumenau is twinned with: * Bariloche, Argentina *

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in São Paulo (state), São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region, Brazil, Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's popul ...

, Brazil * Osorno, Chile * Petrópolis, Brazil * Weingarten, Germany * Posadas, Argentina *

Badajoz Badajoz is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portugal, Portuguese Portugal–Spain border, border, on the left bank of the river ...

, Spain * Oxapampa, Peru

References

Sources

External links

* {{Coord, 26, 56, S, 49, 03, W, region:BR_type:city, display=title Populated places established in 1850 1850 establishments in Brazil German-Brazilian culture Municipalities in Santa Catarina (state)