The Jequitinhonha River () flows mainly through the

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 ...

ian state of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

. Its source lies near Diamantina in the

Espinhaço Mountains The Espinhaço Mountains (, ) are a mountain range in Brazil. The range runs roughly north and south through the states of Minas Gerais and Bahia, extending for approximately . It forms the divide between the upper watershed of the São Francisco ...

at an elevation of , after which it flows northward and then east-northeastward across the uplands. At Salto da Divisa, it is interrupted by the Cachoeira (falls) do Salto Grande, high. The river descends to the coastal plain at the city of

Jequitinhonha Jequitinhonha () is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais. Geography The population was estimated to be 25,474 people living in a total area of 3,518 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequ ...

, beyond which it is also called Rio Grande do Belmonte, and empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Belmonte in

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 ...

state after a course of approximately . The main tributaries are the

Araçuaí River The Araçuaí River () is a river of Minas Gerais state in southeastern Brazil. The Araçuaí River flows through the Jequitinhonha Valley in the northeast of Minas Gerais, through the town of Araçuaí, which the river takes its name from. It is a ...

Piauí Piauí ( ) is one of the states of Brazil, located in the country's Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region. The state has 1.6% of the Brazilian population and produces 0.7% of the Brazilian GDP. Piauí has the shortest coastline of any coas ...

, São Miguel, Itacambiruçu, Salinas, São Pedro, and São Francisco. The valley of the Jequitinhonha is one of the poorest regions of Brazil and is still prone to endemic yellow fever. It covers , twice the size of Switzerland, and has an approximate population of one million people, distributed in about 80 municipalities. The most populous of these is Almenara (36,254 in 2004) located on the middle Jequitinhonha. The valley is known for its variety of gemstones, colonial-era towns, unique handicrafts and starkly beautiful landscapes immortalized by the Brazilian author

João Guimarães Rosa João Guimarães Rosa (; 27 June 1908 – 19 November 1967) was a Brazilian novelist, short story writer, poet and diplomat. Rosa only wrote one novel, '' Grande Sertão: Veredas'' (known in English as ''The Devil to Pay in the Backlands''), a ...

. Most of the soil is arid and is periodically affected by drought or floods. The economically active population numbers over 400,000, of which 180,000 are in the rural areas practicing rudimentary agriculture and cattle raising. Industry employs 50,000 people and is the most important economic source for the municipalities. In the past the region was covered by forests and occupied by indigenous people. What contributed to the

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

and subsequent degradation of the region was the predatory activity of mining and extraction of diamonds. Today there are attempts to develop the work of local artisans, especially in

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porce ...

. While living in total isolation, they have developed ceramic craftwork that is mainly performed by the women, who belong to associations. They make utilitarian pieces that are ranked as the most creative works of Brazilian popular art. The famous "dolls" from that region are in fact pitchers for holding fresh water, thus losing this function and becoming decorative objects. The electrical company of Minas Gerais (

CEMIG Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais S.A. (CEMIG; ) is a Brazilian power company headquartered in Belo Horizonte, capital of the state of Minas Gerais. The company is one of the main electricity concessionaires in Brazil. It operates in the areas ...

) constructed a hydroelectric plant on the river between Berilo and

Grão Mogol Grão Mogol is a Brazil, Brazilian Municipalities of Brazil, municipality located in the north of the state of Minas Gerais. In 2020 the population was 15,890 in a total area of 3,890 km2. The elevation is 829 meters. It became a municipal ...

. The ''Usina Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek'', the hydroelectric plant powered by Irapé Dam, has an installed capacity of 360 MW and regulates the waters of the river which periodically flood. CEMIG began the work in 2002 and in April 2003 diverted the river to two tunnels with a length of more than 1.2 km (three-quarters of a mile). The dam and power station were completed in 2006.

External links

Photos of the JequitinhonhaMap of Doce and Jequitinhonha Rivers Copied from Documents Found in the House of Representatives
from the 19th century Rivers of Bahia Rivers of Minas Gerais {{Bahia-river-stub

See also

External links