rī`mə), state (1996 pop. 247,724), 88,843 sq mi (230,103 sq km), NW Brazil, on the border of Venezuela and Guyana. Boa Vista Boa Vista , city (1996 pop. 154,166), capital of Roraima state, NW Brazil, on the Rio Branco. Its economy is based on the processing and shipment of minerals (gold, bauxite, diamonds, and gold) found in the surrounding region...... Click the link for more information. is the capital. Located almost entirely in the Guiana Highlands Guiana Highlands, mountainous tableland, c.1,200 mi (1,930 km) long and from 200 to 600 mi (322–966 km) wide, N South America, bounded by the Orinoco and Amazon river basins, and by the coastal lowlands of the Guianas.
..... Click the link for more information. , the region is drained by the Rio Branco. The climate is equatorial, with wet winters and dry summers. During the rainy season, transportation is almost impossible. The economy is based on the exploitation of tropical-forest products (largely rubber and Brazil nuts) and on minerals (diamonds, gold, bauxite, quartz, and some oil). Vast stretches of Roraima's rain forests have been leveled for industrial development. Cattle breeding is also important. There is little agriculture. Some 12,000 indigenous people live on the reservation of Raposa Serra do Sol.
The region was penetrated in the late 17th cent. by bandeiras seeking to enslave the native tribes. By the mid-18th cent., the Portuguese had fortified some areas to prevent penetration by the Spanish, English, and Dutch. Roraima was created in 1943 (as a federal territory) from land formerly belonging to Amazonas Amazonas , state (1996 pop. 2,390,102), 604,032 sq mi (1,564,445 sq km), NW Brazil. The capital is Manaus.
..... Click the link for more information. state; until 1962 it was named Rio Branco.
Roraima
Roraima
a mountain massif in the Guiana Highlands, in the Sierra Pacaraima, on the border of Venezuela, Guyana, and Brazil. Elevation, 2,772 m. Mount Roraima is composed primarily of quartz sandstones penetrated by sills and dikes of diabase and gabbro. The flat peak has turret-like edges; the slopes are very steep (400 m).
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