Minas Gerais Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

State of Minas Gerais

Flag	Coat of arms

Motto(s):

Libertas Quae Sera Tamen (Latin)
"Freedom albeit Late"

Location of State of Minas Gerais in Brazil

Country

Brazil

Capital and Largest City

Belo Horizonte

Area

• Total

586,528.29 km² (226,459.84 sq mi)

Area rank

4th

Population

(2012)

• Total

19,855,332

• Rank

2nd

• Density

33.8523006/km² (87.6770561/sq mi)

• Density rank

14th

Demonym(s)

Mineiro

GDP

• Year

2006 estimate

• Total

R$ 214,814,000,000 (3rd)

• Per capita

R$ 11,028 (10th)

HDI

• Year

2005

• Category

0.800 – high (9th)

Time zone

UTC-3 (BRT)

• Summer (DST)

UTC-2 (BRST)

Postal Code

30000-000 to 39990-000

ISO 3166 code

BR-MG

Website

mg.gov.br

Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil. It has the second highest number of people. It has the fourth largest area. The capital is the city of Belo Horizonte, near the center of the state. The name means "General mines". Minas Gerais was formed mainly by colonists searching for gold, gemstones and diamonds.

Location
Cities
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Location

Minas Gerais is in the west of the southeastern part of Brazil. That area also has the states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo. Minas Gerais shares borders with Bahia and Goiás (north), Mato Grosso do Sul (far west), the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro (south) and the state of Espírito Santo (east). It also shares a short border with the Brazilian Federal District.

Cities

Even though it is not the largest state in Brazil, Minas Gerais is the state with the most cities. Of the more than 5,500 municipalities in Brazil, Minas has more than 850 of them. The most important ones are the capital Belo Horizonte, Contagem, Betim, Juiz de Fora, Montes Claros, Uberlândia and Ouro Preto

States of Brazil
Acre \| Alagoas \| Amapá \| Amazonas \| Bahia \| Ceará \| Espírito Santo \| Goiás \| Maranhão \| Mato Grosso \| Mato Grosso do Sul \| Minas Gerais \| Pará \| Paraíba \| Paraná \| Pernambuco \| Piauí \| Rio de Janeiro \| Rio Grande do Norte \| Rio Grande do Sul \| Rondônia \| Roraima \| Santa Catarina \| São Paulo \| Sergipe \| Tocantins
Federal District: Brazilian Federal District