t The Forte dos Reis Magos, looking toward the city of Natal
t The Forte dos Reis Magos, looking toward the city of Natal
Experience Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte, and Ceará
Today this region is Brazil’s holiday paradise, a land of sun, sand, and coconuts, but it wasn’t always that way. As in much of Brazil, the original inhabitants, including the Kiriri, Tarairiu (Tapuya), and Tremembé, were enslaved and destroyed by disease after the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century.
The colonial economy was initially driven by sugar – João Pessoa, the capital of Paraíba, was founded in 1585 and boomed as a port for sugar; it also became a major entry point for enslaved Africans. Ranching also fueled the economy – Natal, the capital of Rio Grande do Norte, was established in 1599, and for centuries was mainly dependent on cattle; today salt is another big earner. In 1618, the Portuguese established a permanent presence in Ceará, a dependency of Pernambuco that became autonomous only in 1799. With transport to Europe becoming easier, its capital Fortaleza became a regional export hub.
In the 19th century the cotton industry came to dominate much of the region, but was impacted in 1884 when Ceará became the first Brazilian province to abolish slavery. Although agriculture – especially fruit and sugar – remains important in all three states, Ceará and Paraíba have also developed major footwear industries, while Rio Grande do Norte is a key exporter of seafood. Increasingly, however, tourism dominates all three economies today.