República Federativa do Brasil

Political Status: Independent monarchy proclaimed 1822; republic established 1889; current constitution promulgated October 5, 1988.

Area: 3,286,470 sq. mi. (8,511,965 sq. km.).

Population: 183,888,841 (2007C), 191, 931,000 (2008E). The 2008 figure is extrapolated from government estimates, the 2007 figure apparently reflecting substantial underenumeration.

Major Urban Centers (2005E): BRASILIA (federal district, 2,231,000), São Paulo (10,278,000), Rio de Janeiro (6,094,000), Salvador (2,673,000), Belo Horizonte (2,375,000), Recife (1,501,000), Belém (1,397,000), Pôrto Alegre (1,387,000).

Official Language: Portuguese.

Monetary Unit: Real (market rate December 1, 2009: 1.72 reals = $1US).

President: Luiz Inácio (“Lula”) DA SILVA (Workers’ Party); elected in runoff balloting on October 27, 2002, and inaugurated on January 1, 2003, for a four-year term, succeeding Fernando Henrique CARDOSO (Brazilian Social Democratic Party); reelected in runoff balloting on October ...