BrazilBrazil General Information on Culture

General Information Amazon River runs about 4,080 miles across South America. There are about 15,000 tributaries. Do you know what a tributary is? A smaller river that flows into a larger one. Every year approximately 20% of Earth’s fresh water flows through the Amazon.

There are some islands in the river that are larger than the country of Switzerland. The water flow is so powerful that the water tastes fresh over 110 miles out to sea. The river and rainforest are though to be home to 1/10 of the Earth’s plant and animal species.

Indians Some Indian groups have been isolated and have never had contact with the world outside of their area of the jungle.

Rain Forest Sometimes called the “Great Green Hell”. You can fly over it in a plane for hours and never see anything but green. Because of it’s location, the last ice age did not affect the forest. Things have been this way for the past 100 million years.

Poison Arrow Frog So poisonous that local Indians just rubbed arrowheads across it’s back and arrows became poison tipped.

Rubber Tapping Scrape the tree and sap begins to flow. Sap is collected to make latex. Thousands of people live deep in the jungle in order to tap rubber.

Capoeira Unique to Brazil. Developed in the slave days. Fighting and fight training were outlawed for the slaves. To hide their training, slaves developed this fight dance.

Special music from an instrument called the birumbow. Capoeira is now taught in some places like Salvador and Rio de Janiero..

Philosophy of the sport is wisdom over force, strategy over speed. Qualities of Good Capoeira: economy of movement relaxed body and alert mind play very close together.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Evolved from Japanese Jiu-Jitsu. Count Koma (Count of Combat) brought from Asia. Refined by Helio Gracie. Evolved into Vale Tudo (No holds Barred fighting) Gentle Combat.

Carnaval Biggest party on Earth. Rio de Janiero’s main event. 4 day celebration. Begins on Saturday and ends on Fat Tuesday coinciding with Mardi Gras. Origins of Carnaval are unclear, but it is believed that it began as a Pagan religious ceremony in Ancient Greece or Rome.

In the late 19 th and 20 th century, Carnaval Balls were brought over from Italy. Big street parties, food and celebration. Queen of Carnaval is chosen every year. Dresses are huge and elaborate, and are usually a part of the floats in the parade.