Brasília, capital of Brazil

Official website: http://www.df.gov.br

Flag of Brasília

Map of Brasília

Capital: Brasilia (see note below)
Area: 5,822 km2
Important cities: see below
Economy: Government sector
Climate in Brasilia, Federal District
Important newspapers: Correio Braziliense

The Federal District is a rectangular area in the middle of the state of Goiás where the Federal Government is established.
According to the Constitution, the Federal District can not be divided in municipalities, like all other states; instead, the F.D. is divided in so called Administrative Regions, the most important of which is Brasília.
So common is the confusion between Federal District and Brasília (this comes from the early days of the new capital) that today they are taken as a single entity; however, besides Brasília, other Administrative Regions also are part of the D.F., like Taguatinga, Guara, etc.
Besides, several other municipalities (under jurisdiction of the state of Goiás) are located right outside the rectangular F.D.; these cities are known as the Entorno, and most of their communities work in Brasília or in the F.D.
The idea of moving the capital of Brazil to interior lands, so as to induce progress, is old (papers from the 16th century already mentioned the idea); the Constitution of 1891 already reserved an area for the future capital. However, it was only in 1956, when President Juscelino Kubischek was in office, that the capital began to be built; Juscelino, or JK, had an obsession to boost the Brazilian economy, and measured no costs to have the new capital ready during his term (instead of waiting trucks to bring cement and other materials, JK ordered airplanes to fly them to Brasilia). Juscelino became "father of Brasilia", and several monuments were built in tribute to him.
Most of the buildings were designed by world famous architect Oscar Niemayer; the layout of the city was devised by Lúcio Costa.
Brasília was inaugurated in April 21 1960; in 1987, Unesco declared it as World Heritage.

Read also: Tourism in Brasilia Information about culture and travel attractions of Brasília.
More about Brasilia.

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