1981 in Brazil

Events in the year 1981 in Brazil.

Federal government

 * President: General João Figueiredo
 * Vice President: Aureliano Chaves

Governors

 * Acre: Vacant
 * Alagoas: Guilherme Palmeira
 * Amazonas: José Bernardino Lindoso
 * Bahia: Antônio Carlos Magalhães
 * Ceará: Virgílio Távora
 * Espírito Santo: Eurico Vieira Resende
 * Goiás: Ary Valadão
 * Maranhão: João Castelo
 * Mato Grosso: Frederico Campos
 * Mato Grosso do Sul: Pedro Pedrossian
 * Minas Gerais: Francelino Pereira
 * Pará: Alacid Nunes
 * Paraíba: Tarcísio Burity
 * Paraná: Nei Braga
 * Pernambuco: Marco Maciel
 * Piauí: Lucídio Portela
 * Rio de Janeiro: Antônio Chagas Freitas
 * Rio Grande do Norte: Lavoisier Maia
 * Rio Grande do Sul: José Augusto Amaral de Souza
 * Santa Catarina: Jorge Bornhausen
 * São Paulo: Paulo Maluf
 * Sergipe: Augusto Franco

Vice governors

 * Acre: José Fernandes Rego
 * Alagoas: Teobaldo Vasconcelos Barbosa
 * Amazonas: Paulo Pinto Nery
 * Bahia: Luis Viana Neto
 * Ceará: Manuel de Castro Filho
 * Espírito Santo: José Carlos Fonseca
 * Goiás: Rui Brasil Cavalcanti
 * Maranhão: Artur Teixeira de Carvalho
 * Mato Grosso: José Vilanova Torres
 * Mato Grosso do Sul: Vacant
 * Minas Gerais: João Marques de Vasconcelos
 * Pará: Gerson dos Santos Peres
 * Paraíba: Clóvis Cavalcanti
 * Paraná: José Hosken de Novaes
 * Pernambuco: Roberto Magalhães Melo
 * Piauí: Waldemar de Castro Macedo
 * Rio de Janeiro: Hamilton Xavier
 * Rio Grande do Norte: Geraldo Melo
 * Rio Grande do Sul: Otávio Badui Germano
 * Santa Catarina: Henrique Hélion Velho de Córdova
 * São Paulo: José Maria Marin
 * Sergipe: Djenal Tavares Queiroz

January

 * January 6: A passenger ship called Novo Amapá was sunk by an overcrowded capacity off of a river mouth in Caja, Pará State. According to the Transport Ministry of Brazil, there was a confirmed report of at least 130 fatalities.
 * January 13-17: Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau makes his visit to Brazil to meet President João Figueiredo at the Planalto Palace the following day.

April

 * April 30: Two bombs explode inside a car at the Pavilhão Riocentro, in Rio de Janeiro, during a concert commemorating Labor Day. Sergeant Guilherme Pereira do Rosário is killed and Captain Wilson Dias Machado is injured; both of the Brazilian Army.

August

 * August 19: The Brazilian television network Sistema Brasileiro de Televisão (SBT) is launched by businessman and television personality Silvio Santos.

September

 * September 12: President João Figueiredo inaugurates the JK Memorial in Brasília.
 * September 19: According to an official report from the Transport Ministry of Brazil, a passenger ferry, called the Sobral Santos II was capsized nearby Óbidos Port, Pará State, on the Amazon River, where more than 300 people drowned.

December

 * December 22: President João Figueiredo signs a law, creating the state of Rondônia.

January

 * January 21: Michel Teló, singer

February

 * February 4 – Sabrina Sato, television presenter

March

 * March 1 – Ana Hickmann, model

April

 * April 11 – Alessandra Ambrosio, model
 * April 25 – Felipe Massa, race car driver
 * April 26 – Mariana Ximenes, actress

June

 * June 12 – Adriana Lima, model
 * June 24 – Júnior Assunção, mixed martial artist
 * June 25 – Carlo Prater, mixed martial artist
 * June 27 – Cléber Santana, footballer (d. 2016)
 * June 29 – Maria Maya, actress

July

 * July 5 – Gianne Albertoni, model
 * July 19 – Anderson Luiz de Carvalho, footballer
 * July 26 – Maicon Douglas Sisenando, footballer

August

 * August 31 – Mosiah Rodrigues, gymnist

October

 * October 11 – Arturo Ruas, professional wrestler

November

 * November 4 – Adriana Araujo, boxer

June

 * June 13 – Amácio Mazzaropi, actor (b. 1912)

August

 * August 18 – Carolina Nabuco, writer and translator (b. 1890)
 * August 22 – Glauber Rocha, film director (b. 1939)