The Chuí, or Chuy'', ''Stream (
Portuguese: ''Arroio Chuí'' ,
Rioplatense Spanish: ''Arroyo Chuy'' or ), is a short stream on the
Brazilian–
Uruguayan border that is celebrated as
Brazil's southernmost point.
Geography
The Chui rises in a small
swamp
A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
in the
sandy
coastal plains of the far southern
Brazilian
state of
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 st ...
. It runs initially southward, then turns east before flowing into the
Atlantic Ocean. In its final course, the stream marks the last stretch of the Brazilian border with
Uruguay. In Brazil, it lies mostly in the municipality of
Santa Vitória do Palmar
Santa Vitória do Palmar (lit. "Saint Victoria of the Palms") is a Brazilian city and municipality. It is the southernmost municipality in Brazil, located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. To the west of the municipality is the Lagoa Mirim a ...
, with a short section in
Chuí. The Uruguayan side belongs to the city of
Chuy, in the
department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of
Rocha Rocha may refer to:
* Rocha (surname), a Portuguese surname
* Rocha, Moca, Puerto Rico, a barrio in the municipality of Moca, Puerto Rico
* Rocha, Rio de Janeiro, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
* Rocha, Uruguay, capital city of the Rocha ...
.
The Chuí spans only a few tens of kilometres long and its water volume is relatively weak. This is why it is called an ''arroio'' or ''arroyo'', which in
Portuguese and
Spanish means "stream", respectively. It would be unremarkable, were it not for the fact that it is known throughout Brazil and mentioned in all Brazilian geography schoolbooks as being the country's southernmost point. The most southerly point of Brazil is on a bend of the stream approximately upstream from its mouth, near the twin coastal villages of
Barra do Chuí Barra do Chuí, known officially as Praia da Barra do Chuí, is a resort in the municipality of Santa Vitória do Palmar, in Rio Grande do Sul. It is the southernmost resort in Rio Grande do Sul and Brazil, bordering Barra del Chuy in Uruguay, sepa ...
(Brazil) and
Barra del Chuy (Uruguay), at .
The mouth of the Chuí Stream is not only the southernmost, but also the westernmost point of the
Brazilian coast, as well as both the northernmost and easternmost point of the Uruguayan coast. It also marks the southern end of
Cassino Beach, the world's longest uninterrupted stretch of sandy ocean shore, stretching over from the stone
breakwater
Breakwater may refer to:
* Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour
Places
* Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia
* Breakwater Island
Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...
s of
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico.
The length of the Rio G ...
in its northern end.
In popular culture
The widespread Brazilian Portuguese expression ''"do Oiapoque ao Chuí"'' ("from the
Oiapoque to the Chuí
ivers) is used to mean the whole nation, by mentioning the waterways that mark respectively the northern and southern extremities of the Brazilian coastline (the mouth of the Oiapoque River is often mistakenly thought to be the entire country's northernmost point, not only of its coast). The saying is used in the same way as
Americans use the expression "from coast to coast."
Gallery
Image:Barra do Chuí.jpg, The mouth of Arroio Chuí on the Atlantic Ocean. Brazil on the left, Uruguay on the right.
The stone breakwater on the left is both the southernmost and the westernmost point of the Brazilian coast; the one on the right is both the northernmost and the easternmost point of the Uruguayan coast.
Image:Farolchui.jpg, Lighthouse on the Brazilian side.
Image:Pontearroiochui.jpg, International bridge near the mouth, seen from the Brazilian side.
Image:Arroio_Chuí_07.JPG, The exact southernmost point of Brazil, seen from the Uruguayan side.
See also
*
Extreme points of Brazil
This is a list of the extreme points of Brazil.
Latitude and longitude
The following points are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.
Brazil
* Northernmost point: Monte Caburaí, Roraima ()
* Northernmost town: Uiramut� ...
*
Chuí - nearby Brazilian city
*
Chuy - nearby Uruguayan city
*
Santa Vitória do Palmar
Santa Vitória do Palmar (lit. "Saint Victoria of the Palms") is a Brazilian city and municipality. It is the southernmost municipality in Brazil, located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. To the west of the municipality is the Lagoa Mirim a ...
- Brazilian municipality in whose territory most of the Chuí stream lies
References
External links
Barra del Chuy(in Spanish) - site of the neighbouring Uruguayan beach resort village, with many photographs of the mouth of the Chuí and neighbouring beaches and villages on both the Brazilian and Uruguayan sides.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chui Stream
Rivers of Rio Grande do Sul
Rivers of Uruguay
Brazil–Uruguay border
Extreme points of Brazil
Rivers of Rocha Department