Guarani das Missões | |
|---|---|
 Entrance of Guarani das Missões | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
| Nickname: Polish Capital of theGauchos | |
| Motto(s): Uma cidade com muita história, pra você viver a sua | |
 Location of Guarani das Missões in Rio Grande do Sul | |
| Country |  Brazil |
| Region | South |
| State | Rio Grande do Sul |
| Mesoregion | Noroeste Rio-Grandense |
| Microregion | Cerro Largo |
| Founded | 27 May 1959 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Bertíl Nilsson (PDT, 2021 - 2024) |
| Area | |
• Total | 290.496 km2 (112.161 sq mi) |
| Population (2020[1]) | |
• Total | 7,463 |
| • Density | 25.69/km2 (66.54/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Guaraniense |
| Time zone | UTC−3 (BRT) |
| Website | Official website |
Guarani das Missões is a municipality in the state ofRio Grande do Sul,Brazil.
Guarani das Missões calls itself thePolish Capital of Rio Grande do Sul because it was settled primarily byPolish immigrants, starting over one century ago. ThePolish language is still spoken and is maintained as a unique regionalism, alongside the national language,Portuguese.
Guarani das Missões began as aJesuit reduction settlement east of theUruguay River. In 1891 the federal government and colonial commission of Brazil assessed and divided the land for colonization. The land originally consisted of two centers, one on the banks of the Uruguay River and one further into the interior of the country on the banks of theComandaí River. The colony on the banks of the Uruguay would become the modern municipality ofPorto Lucena whereas the land close to the Comandaí would be foundation for Guarani das Missões. Revolutions in Brazil between 1894 and 1897 had caused a delay in the colonization of the region, with just an estimated 1,200 inhabitants between the Uruguay and Comandaí colonies. The early settlers were ethnically diverse, with Swedes being the first to arrive. They were followed by Poles, Germans, Italians, Russians, Portuguese, Czechoslovakians, Austrians, Spaniards, Ukrainians and others soon after. Poles began to become prominent in Guarani das Missões around 1900, around the same time that the colony began increased construction and surveyance of the land.
Between 1911 and 1959 Guarani das Missões was a district within the municipality ofSão Luiz Gonzaga. It name was changed several times during this time period, first being namedGuarani then becoming theColônia Guarani and then simplifying to justGuarani again, before undergoing a complete change toGuaramano. It finally becameGuarani das Missões in 1950 and separated as its own municipality in 1959.[2][3]
Called the Polish capital of Rio Grande Do Sul, the majority of the population is descended from Polish settlers. Today residents still celebrate an annualPolFest in celebration of Polish colonization and immigration. The festival consist of live music, a beauty queen contest, Polish cuisine, and locally madeMiętówka, a kind of mint liquor that was brought by Polish immigrants. In addition to the large Polish descended population, a majority of the population is Catholic with a monument toPope John Paul II and a shrine dedicated toOur Lady of Czestochova.
| Race/Skin color | Percentage | Number |
| White | 87.78% | 7115 |
| Pardo (brown) | 10.57% | 858 |
| Afro-Brazilian | 1.69% | 137 |
| Asian | 0.05% | 4 |
| Religion | Percentage | Number |
| Roman Catholics | 85.85% | 6,967 |
| Protestants | 12.53% | 1017 |
| No Religion | 1.50% | 122 |
| Spiritists | 0.07% | 6 |
| Unknown | 0.04% | 3 |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
28°08′S54°34′W / 28.133°S 54.567°W /-28.133; -54.567
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