Nilópolis
Encyclopedia
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
and a municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, located in the Rio de Janeiro state
Rio de Janeiro (state)
Rio de Janeiro is one of the 27 states of Brazil.Rio de Janeiro has the second largest economy of Brazil behind only São Paulo state.The state of Rio de Janeiro is located within the Brazilian geopolitical region classified as the Southeast...
's southwestern region, bordering São João de Meriti
São João de Meriti
São João de Meriti is a brazilian city in Rio de Janeiro state. Its historical name is São João do Rio Meriti. Its population was 468.309 inhabitants in 2008...
, Mesquita
Mesquita
Mesquita is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. Its population was 182,546 and its area is 35 km²....
and Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
. It is the smallest municipality in Rio de Janeiro state, with a total area of 19.39 km². The population of 157,483 inhabitants living in an area of 9 km² and the remaining area corresponds to the Gericinó's Natural Park. Officially, the population density exceeds 8,120 inhabitants/km², but if calculated just 9 km² occupied, it becomes the most densely populated city in Brazil with more than 17.400 inhabitants/km². Currently, the São João de Meriti
São João de Meriti
São João de Meriti is a brazilian city in Rio de Janeiro state. Its historical name is São João do Rio Meriti. Its population was 468.309 inhabitants in 2008...
have the highest population density, with 12,897 inhabitants/km².
Nilópolis was part of the hereditary captainship of São Vicente
São Vicente, São Paulo
São Vicente is a coastal city of southern São Paulo, Brazil. Its estimated population in 2006 was 329,370 inhabitants.It was the first Portuguese permanent settlement in the Americas and the first capital of the Captaincy of São Vicente, now the state of São Paulo...
that belonged to Martim Afonso de Sousa
Martim Afonso de Sousa
Martim Afonso de Sousa was a Portuguese fidalgo and explorer.Born in Vila Viçosa, he was commander of the first official Portuguese expedition into mainland Brazil...
in 1531.
Nilópolis is famous for its Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba Beija-Flor de Nilópolis
GRES Beija-Flor de Nilópolis
The Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba Beija-Flor is a Samba school headquartered in the municipality of Nilópolis, Baixada Fluminense, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.- History :...
, one of the most successful and luxurious Samba school
Samba school
A samba school is a club or dancing school. They practice and often perform in huge square-compounds devoted to practicing and exhibiting samba, an African-Brazilian dance. The schools are traditionally associated with a particular neighborhood, often shanty towns...
s and usually a top contender for winning the carnival parade in Rio.