The Semi-Arid Areas of Northeastern and Southeastern Brazil, so often mentioned in literature, now appear as maps, pictures and satellite images in the second volume of the Atlas of Literary Representation of Brazilian Regions, released by IBGE today. The book is a sequence to the collection which started with Southern Brazil, in November 2006. The Atlas will cost R$ 45 at the IBGE virtual shop https://www.ibge.gov.br/lojavirtual/ , but can be viewed freely in the Geography section of our web site www.ibge.gov.br.

The second volume of the Atlas of Literary Representation of Brazilian Regions covers the different semi-arid areas which, since the 16th century and for several reasons have been called “Sertões”.  Such areas currently belong to the states of Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, Bahia, Pernambuco, Paraíba and Ceará: Sertões do Leste, Sertões do Ouro, Sertões dos Currais, Sertão de Cima and finally,  Sertões Nordestinos.

The analysis is not based on political or administrative subdivisions or either on physical features, but refers to common characteristics (economic, demographic, cultural and environmental ones) highlighted in the works of famous writers such as José de Alencar, Coelho Netto, Agripa Vasconcelos, João Guimarães Rosa, Afrânio Peixoto, Ariano Suassuna, among others. Besides showing all the Regions and their usual geographic features – as defined by IBGE itself and other institutions – the atlas presents geographic information in terms of cultural aspects emerging from well-knows novels. Texts in the publication also brings some regional terms related to the territory and its settlement, all of which are presented in a glossary in the end of the book.

The word “sertão” has a very broad meaning in the Portuguese language, which has caused it be used to define different parts of the territory, even of the Amazon area, at different moments in time.

The first meaning appeared right after the arrival of Portuguese settlers. Having started colonization on the coast of the country, they named all land located inland as “sertão”. To this meaning was added the idea of unknown, dangerous land. Little by little the difference between the settled (shore) and the unsettled part of the country, that is, the “sertão”, was established 

This idea is present the first chapter of the book, in the portrait of Sertões do Leste, which corresponds to all the big area of the Atlantic Forest and Mar and Mantiqueira mountain ranges, which cover most of the Brazilian southeast and received the aforementioned name between the 16^th and 18^th centuries.

The discovery of gold in the rivers Carmo (1696), Sabará-buçu and in the mountains of Ouro Preto (MG) initiated a strong movement towards the area and pushed the “sertão” to other places. The development of mining activities led to the appearance of a new concept of the term, which then marked the difference between highly-populated areas controlled by the Portuguese crown – the mines – which were responsible for the reduction of the population scarcity and for  the conflict between different segments to control the territory –the “currais”. This is the period of Sertões do Ouro and Sertões dos Currais, approached in the second chapter of the book.  

The concept of “sertão” being a part of the territory in which economic activity does not occur in parallel with participation by the State is a long-lasting one. Until the 1930’s, at least, “sertões” were ruled by the so-called Colonels. These men, usually owners of big areas of land, controlled the lives of people who worked in or inhabited their land and even killed such people on some occasions.

This definition prevails in the third chapter of the book, which is dedicated to the area called Chapada Diamantina (BA), also known as Sertão de Cima. It was there that the figure of Colonels became a deep-rooted part of culture portrayed in the historian novels with this setting.

The last chapter of the book presents Sertões Nordestinos, which encompass Cariri Paraibano, Sertão do Pajeú and Cariri Cearense. This chapter aims at showing that the Northeaster “sertão” has not always been associated to arid climate, as it is believed nowadays.

Southern Brazil approached in the first volume

The idea of providing geographic contextualization to literature arose in 2002, and was implemented in the IBGE Geographic Atlas, at first. The objective was to facilitate the incorporation of literary studies into the universe of Geography and other subjects in the Human Sciences field. After this first experience, a deeper study began to be conducted and resulted in the four-volume collection entitled Atlas of Literary Representation of Brazilian Regions.

Released in November 2006, with 86 pages and four chapters, the first volume of the Atlas of Literary Representation of Brazilian Regions approached southern Brazil: Campanha Gaúcha, Colonies, Itajaí Valley and the north of Paraná, through pictures, satellite images and varied-scale maps. This publication brought a special chapter about the Jesuit Missions which, in spite of not forming any geographic location, are certainly relevant to the understanding of the formation process of Rio Grande do Sul.

First atlas wins a prize in Rio Grande do Sul

The of Literary Representation of Brazilian Regions – Southern Brazil Brasil Meridional was the winner in the category Publication of the Year (2007), of the prize “Prêmio O Sul, Nacional e os Livros”, promoted by Pampa Communication Networks, O Sul Newspaper and Nacional Supermarket, supported by Chamber of Books of Rio Grande do Sul, the Secretariat of Culture of the State of Rio Grande do Sul and the Municipal Government of Porto Alegre.