Piracicaba

Piracicaba ( or ) is a city located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The population is 423,323 (2022) in an area of 1,378.07 km2. It is at an elevation of 547 m above sea level.

Name
The place name comes from a word in the Tupi language that means "place where the fish stops", and it is formed by the junction of the terms pirá ("fish"), syk ("stop") and aba ("place"). The name refers to the waterfalls of the Piracicaba River, which bisects the city, which is a point where the "piracema"—fish swimming upstream to reproduce— are stopped.

History
In 1766, Antonio Correa Barbosa, charged with the task of establishing a settlement on the estuary of Piracicaba river, opted for a location about 90 km from it. The settlement was officially founded on August 1, 1767, as a povoação subordinated to the vila of Itu. In 1784, Piracicaba got emancipated from Itu, becoming a freguesia.

In 1821, the freguesia was promoted to vila, known as Vila Nova da Constituição. In 1856, Vila Nova da Constituição was promoted to city status and in 1877 it was officially named "Piracicaba", following a law by the then councilman and future Brazilian president Prudente de Morais. 

In 1944, the city was made the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Piracicaba.

Notable institutions, events, resources
Piracicaba is home to the oldest agricultural university in Brazil, the Luiz de Queiroz School of Agriculture of the University of São Paulo. Founded in 1901, the school is located on a farm with a large collection of trees and plants. It is also recognized as a leader in the field of precision agriculture. Other universities based in Piracicaba are the Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP) and the University of Campinas' School of Dentistry.

Piracicaba is known by the nickname "Noiva da Colina", meaning "Bride of the Hill", and is the annual host to the "Festa das Nações" (Nations' Party, where people may find foods from all over the world), and to the "Salão Internacional do Humor" (International Humor Exhibition), where cartoonists from around the world display comic drawings.

Piracicaba is famous for its sugarcane plantations, traditional cachaça production, and traditional music.

Economy


The city is an important and traditional producer of sugarcane. The harvest of sugarcane allows for the production of many derivates, including sugar, oil, and ethanol. Copersucar, a large company that has a center of research on genetic improvement of sugarcane, participates in this growing industry.

Another characteristic economic feature is the presence of large industries, the main ones being Caterpillar, ArcelorMittal, Raizen and Hyundai.

Geography
Piracicaba's altitude is 554 meters. Temperatures through the year vary from average highs of 30 °C to average lows of 12.0 °C, and Piracicaba experiences an average annual rainfall of 123 centimeters. The area of the city is 1,378 square kilometers, making it the 13th largest city in the State of São Paulo. The urban area of Piracicaba is 233.36 square kilometers.

Demographics
The population in 2019 was 423.323. The Human Development Index for the city was 0.710 in 2000, and 0.785 in 2010, both falling in the "high" category.

Religion
Like the cultural variety in Piracicaba, there are several religious manifestations in the city. It is possible to find in the city dozens of different Protestant denominations, as well as the practice of Buddhism, Islamism, Spiritism, and others. In the last decades, Buddhism and Eastern religions have grown in the city. There also are the Jewish, Mormon and Afro-Brazilian religions. According to data from the 2019 Census conducted by the IBGE, the population of Piracicaba was composed that year by Catholics (59.78%), Evangelicals (27.42%), no religious affiliation (7.47%), Spiritist (2.9%) and Jehovah's Witnesses (0.95%). The remaining 2.09% of the resident population declared themselves of other denominations or of undetermined religion.

Source: IBGE - Census 2019

Catholic Church
The Catholic church in the municipality is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Piracicaba.

Protestant Church
The most diverse evangelical beliefs are present in the city, mainly Pentecostal, including the Assemblies of God in Brazil (the largest evangelical church in the country), Christian Congregation in Brazil, among others. These denominations are growing more and more throughout Brazil.

Utilities
As of 2010, water and power are supplied at a level approaching 100% of the households. As of 2019 there were 2.15 inhabitants per car in the city, and, in 2022, roughly 0.72 inhabitants per mobile phone line, with 99% of the city's population calculated as having access to a mobile phone.

Media
In telecommunications, the city was served by Telecomunicações de São Paulo. In July 1998, this company was acquired by Telefónica, which adopted the Vivo brand in 2012. The company is currently an operator of cell phones, fixed lines, internet (fiber optics/4G) and television (satellite and cable).

Notable people

 * José Altafini, also known as "Mazola", a professional footballer.
 * Jonathan Cafú, footballer
 * Erik Cardoso, sprinter
 * Cassiano Leal, swimmer
 * Evaristo Conrado Engelberg, engineer and inventor
 * André Cypriano, professional fotographer and documentarist
 * Ronaldo Guiaro, footballer
 * Marcos Pizzelli - footballer who played for the Armenian national team.
 * Rubens Ometto Silveira Mello, the owner of Cosan.

Sister cities

 * 🇰🇷 Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
 * 🇸🇻 Santa Ana, El Salvador