Camamu 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 the state of

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

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 ...

. Politically, it is in the Valença subregion of the Sul Baiano region. It is located on the southern coast of Bahia state, the Costa do Dendê (Palm Coast), along the BA-001 highway. The municipality covers an area of 885.20 km², and, in a 2020 estimate, it had 35,382 inhabitants.

History

The region was originally inhabited by native Macamamus Indians. The name Camamu was the name of the Indians' village. In 1560 the Jesuits established a mission, that the next in year, upon completion of the chapel, was converted into a parish with the name "Aldeia de Nossa Senhora da Assunção de Macamamu". On 22 May 1693 the village was elevated to town status with the name of Camamu. And finally, on June 27, 1891, it officially became a city. Like many coastal towns, Camamu was built at two levels. In the upper town were the churches and colonial houses, while down by the harbor were the commercial establishments. The town grew rich as the area became the largest producer of

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

in Brazil, and it became the target of pirates and invaders such as the Dutch. From 1624 to 1627 the town suffered several attacks by the Dutch. To protect itself from further incursions, the inhabitants blocked the passage to the harbor with huge rocks, that forced boats to zigzag in the channel in order to reach the port. The rocks remain in place today. In 1782, by order of the Portuguese Crown, the pioneer João Gonçalves da Costa opened the first road connecting Camamu with inland settlements. Because of its importance to the economic life of the province, it became known as the "Estrada das Nações" ("Road of Nations"). In 1961, Camamu municipality was subdivided with a portion remaining in Camamu and a portion becoming the municipality of Ibirapitanga. In 2008 the Comptroller General in his audit cited municipal officials for widespread corruption.

Geography

Pedra Furada Island and the Maraú Peninsula enclose a deep bay, Camamu Bay (Baía de Camamu), in which the town of Camamu is located. Highway BA-650 runs west to the city of Ibirapitanga. The municipality contains 33.28% of the Baía de Camamu Environmental Protection Area, created in 2002.

Economy

The area produces

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

and

baryte Baryte, barite or barytes ( or ) is a mineral consisting of barium sulfate (Ba S O4). Baryte is generally white or colorless, and is the main source of the element barium. The ''baryte group'' consists of baryte, celestine (strontium sulfate), ...

is mined. The major agricultural product is cattle.

Notes

External links

* , includes a map of the area {{coord, 13, 57, S, 39, 07, W, display=title, region:BR_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Municipalities in Bahia

History

Geography

Economy

See also

Notes

External links