Flag Description

Green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress); the current flag was inspired by the banner of the former Empire of Brazil (1822-1889); on the imperial flag, the green represented the House of Braganza of Pedro I, the first Emperor of Brazil, while the yellow stood for the Habsburg Family of his wife; on the modern flag the green represents the forests of the country and the yellow rhombus its mineral wealth; the blue circle and stars, which replaced the coat of arms of the original flag, depict the sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of 15 November 1889 - the day the Republic of Brazil was declared; the number of stars has changed with the creation of new states and has risen from an original 21 to the current 27 (one for each state and the Federal District)

Independence / Republic Days
Independence from United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves
Declared 7 September 1822

Capital
Brasília

Calling code
+55

Currency
Real (R$) (BRL)

Geographic Coordinates
15°47'S 47°52'W

Official language
Portuguese

Location
Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean

Geographic coordinates
10 00 S, 55 00 W


Map references
South America

Area
total: 8,514,877 sq km
country comparison to the world: 5
land: 8,459,417 sq km
water: 55,460 sq km
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo

Area - comparative
Area comparison map:

Coastline
7,491 km

Maritime claims
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico da Neblina 2,994 m

Nationality
noun: Brazilian(s)
adjective: Brazilian

Languages
Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language)
note: less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and a large number of minor Amerindian languages

National symbol(s)
Southern Cross constellation

National anthem
name: "Hino Nacional Brasileiro" (Brazilian National Anthem)

National Anthem lyrics/music: Joaquim Osorio Duque ESTRADA/Francisco Manoel DA SILVA
note: music adopted 1890, lyrics adopted 1922; the anthem's music, composed in 1822, was used unofficially for many years before it was adopted

Budget
revenues: $851.1 billion
expenditures: $815.6 billion (2013 est.)

Taxes and other revenues
38.9% of GDP (2013 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47

For details, contact Datacentre