Paraná

Maritime state of southern Brazil, bordered in the west by Paraguay and in the east by the Atlantic Ocean; area 199,555 sq km/77,048 sq mi; population (1996) 9,003,804. The capital is Curitiba. Other significant towns are Paranaguá, its port, Londrina, Ponta Grossa, Lapa, and Jacaresinho. Although livestock is raised on a large scale, the state's main agricultural activity is the cultivation of crops, among which are coffee (Paraná is the country's main producer), wheat, cotton, soya, potatoes, rye, rice, maize, flax, tobacco, tung oil, and tropical and other fruit.

This region is one of the main forest areas of Brazil, being famous for its Paraná pine, and timber constitutes one of its main industries. It is also the country's leading producer of yerba maté (‘Paraguay tea’).

Apart from the coastal strip, which is cut off from the rest of the state by the Serra do Mar mountains, Paraná forms part of the great Brazilian plateau, with the River Paraná marking its northwestern and western borders. The climate is subtropical, with hot summers, warm winters, and adequate, well-distributed rainfall. The state was settled by immigrants from Italy and eastern Europe, and this has had an impact on farming methods and choice of crop. Mineral resources are negligible or unexploited, except for coal (Paraná is one of the few Brazilian states where coal is mined).

The Iguaçu Falls are in the far southwest of the state, on the border with Argentina. In the west, on the River Paraná, were the Sete Quedas waterfalls. These were submerged in 1982 by the infilling of the lake behind the enormous Itaipu dam.