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Home » Central and South America » Why is Rio de Janeiro called January River?

Why is Rio de Janeiro called January River?

December 14, 2021 by Shelia Campbell

The name Rio de Janeiro, which translates in English to literally ‘January River’, was the result of a mistake by Portuguese explorer Gaspar de Lemos.Mistakenly thinking the bay was the mouth of a river, he decided to call the area Rio de Janeiro after the month he arrived there.

Contents

What does January river mean?

Rio de Ja·nei·ro
The city’s name, Portuguese for “River of January,” reflects the fact that the first European explorers to visit the bay, in January 1502, believed it was the mouth of a river. The city, founded in 1565, was the capital of Brazil from 1763 until 1960, when the government was transferred to Brasília.

What city means January river?

Rio de Janeiro
1. Rio de Janeiro means January River, but the river is actually a bay. Rio de Janeiro, or January River, is a very poetic name for a city with more than 200 rivers running through it.

Is rio named after a river?

They named the area named Rio de Janeiro, “River of January.” This etymology is widely accepted, although some scholars argue that in 16th-century Portuguese, a rio might have been a looser term for any deep indentation along a coast—meaning those explorers weren’t quite as confused as they might seem.

What was the original name for Rio de Janeiro?

São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro
The city of Rio de Janeiro proper was founded on 1 March 1565 by the Portuguese, led by Estácio de Sá, including Antônio de Mariz. It was named São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro, in honor of St. Sebastian, the saint who was the namesake and patron of the Portuguese then-monarch Sebastião.

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What does Rio mean in Brazil?

The name was given to the city’s original site by Portuguese navigators who arrived on January 1, 1502, and mistook the entrance of the bay for the mouth of a river (rio is the Portuguese word for “river” and janeiro the word for “January”).

What does Rio mean in English?

river
British English: river /ˈrɪvə/ NOUN. A river is a large amount of fresh water flowing continuously in a long line across land, such as the Amazon or the Nile. American English: river /ˈrɪvər/

What does Rio Bravo mean in English?

• RIO BRAVO (noun) Meaning: A North American river; boundary between the United States and Mexico; flows into Gulf of Mexico. Classified under: Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

What is a Brazilian favela?

favela, also spelled favella, in Brazil, a slum or shantytown located within or on the outskirts of the country’s large cities, especially Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. A favela typically comes into being when squatters occupy vacant land at the edge of a city and construct shanties of salvaged or stolen materials.

What is Rio de Janeiro mean in Portuguese?

January River
The name Rio de Janeiro, which translates in English to literally ‘January River’, was the result of a mistake by Portuguese explorer Gaspar de Lemos. Lemos left Portugal in 1501 on an expedition and arrived at a huge bay in Brazil, known nowadays as Guanabara Bay, the following January.

Is Rio de Janeiro a river?

The Guandu River is a river of Rio de Janeiro state in southeastern Brazil. This river together with the Paraíba do Sul River are the most important in the Rio de Janeiro state. The river supplies water to 9 million people in Greater Rio de Janeiro.
Guandu River (Rio de Janeiro)

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Guandu River
Length 108.5 km (67.4 mi)

Is Rio a Brazilian name?

The name Rio is a girl’s name of Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese origin meaning “place of the cherry blossoms”. Rio is one of Japan’s most popular girls names, constantly sitting in that country’s Top 10. Of course, Rio may also stem from the Portuguese and Spanish word for river, and the Brazilian city Rio de Janeiro.

Is there a Janeiro river?

The Acari River is located in Rio de Janeiro state in southeastern Brazil. It is one of the major watercourses of the city of Rio de Janeiro.
Acari River (Rio de Janeiro)

Acari River
Country Brazil
Physical characteristics
Source
• location Serra do Gericinó, Rio de Janeiro state

Why was Rio de Janeiro built where it is?

Rio de Janeiro is the city it is today because of its rich, historical past. Portuguese rulers were the first ones to rule Rio when they landed on the soil of Guanabara Bay on the 1st January 1502.To protect from further invasions, the city was moved to a safer position on a hill, which was later named ‘Castle Hill’.

What language does Rio de Janeiro speak?

Portuguese is the official and national language of Brazil and is widely spoken by most of the population.

Who made Rio?

Blue Sky Studios
Rio is a 2011 American 3D computer-animated musical adventure comedy film produced by Blue Sky Studios and directed by Carlos Saldanha.

What does Sol de Janeiro mean?

Sun of January
Sol de Janeiro means Sun of January. It’s a play on words that combines the name of the city that inspires them ⁠— Rio de Janeiro ⁠— with the beautiful sun that shines on its beaches.

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Is Ree a word?

Yes, ree is in the scrabble dictionary.

Is REO a word?

Reo is valid Scrabble Word.

Does Rio mean red?

The color red on the flag of Rio de Janeiro symbolizes the blood shed by Saint Sebastian, the saintly patron of the city, as well as the blood shed by the city’s founder, Estácio de Sá, and the early settlers of Rio de Janeiro.

Where was Rio Lobo filmed?

The film was the last film directed by Howard Hawks, from a script by Leigh Brackett. The film was shot in Technicolor with a running time of 114 minutes. The musical score was composed by Jerry Goldsmith and the movie was filmed at Cuernavaca in the Mexican state of Morelos and at Tucson, Arizona.

Filed Under: Central and South America Tagged With: Brazil, Rio de Janeiro

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About Shelia Campbell

Sheila Campbell has been traveling the world for as long as she can remember. Her parents were avid travelers, and they passed their love of exploration onto their daughter. Sheila has visited every continent on Earth, and she's always looking for new and interesting places to explore.

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