Minas Gerais

**Minas Gerais** is ane o the 26 states o Brazil, o whilk it is the seicont maist populous, the seicont richest, an the fowert mucklest in aurie. 
Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state wi the mucklest nummer o Presidents o Brazil, the day's ane, Dilma Rousseff, bein ane o them. The caipital is the ceety o Belo Horizonte, near the central aurie. The main producer o coffee an milk in the kintra, Minas Gerais is kent for its heritage o airchitectur an colonial airt in historical ceeties lik Ouro Preto, Diamantina, Tiradentes an Mariana. In the sooth, the tourist points is the hydro mineral spas, lik Caxambu, São Lourenço, São Thomé das Letras, Monte Verde an the naitional pairks o Caparaó an Canastra. The landscape o the State is markit bi muntains, glens, an muckle auries o fertile lands. In the Serra do Cipó, Sete Lagoas, Cordisburgo an Lagoa Santa, the caves an waterfaws is the attractions. Some o Brazil's maist famous caverns is locate there.

## Etymology
There twa interpretations for the oreegin o the name Minas Gerais. It comes frae "Minas dos Matos Gerais", the umwhile name o the colonial province, whilk means "Mines o the General Woods". Sae a first an mair common unnerstaundin affirms that the name simply means "General Mines", wi the wird Gerais serrin as an adjective tae the mines, whilk wis thairsels spread in several spots aroond a muckler region. Anither explication is that this ignores the twa muckle geographical spaces whilk conformed the state in its history: the region o the mines (Minas), an the region o the Gerais ("Matos Gerais" or "Campos Gerais", whilk means something close tae "General Fields"). This correspondit tae the auries o Sertão whilk wis farther an haird tae access (wi an economy based on fermin an agricultur) frae the minin spots (whase economic space wis urban frae its oreegin). The confuision comes frae the fact that the term "Gerais" is takken as an adjective tae "Minas" in the first version, although accordin tae this pynt o view it refers tae the region cried Gerais (as a noun). A further complication is that this isna a weel defined aurie on the map o the state, but raither a designation tae thir pairts ootwi the minin spots, mair effeirin tae the geography o Sertão, an mair isolate frae the state's nucleus.

## Location
Minas Gerais is in the wast o the sootheastren subdiveesion o Brasil an conteens the states o São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro an Espírito Santo. It haes mairches wi Bahia an Goiás (north), Mato Grosso do Sul (far wast), the states o São Paulo an Rio de Janeiro (sooth) an the state o Espírito Santo (east). It skares a short boond wi the Brazilian Federal Destrict. Minas Gerais is situate atween 14°13'58" an 22°54'00"&nbsp;S latitude an atween 39°51'32" an 51°02'35"&nbsp;W langitude.

## Ceeties

In maugre o no bein the mucklest state o Brazil, Minas Gerais haes the mucklest number o ceeties. O the mair nor 5,500 municipalities in the kintra, Minas haes 853 o them, a fact explicate bi the nummer o indwellers an bi the vast territory *(lariger than [[Metropolitan Fraunce]])*. The maist notable ceeties is: the caipital Belo Horizonte, Contagem, Betim, Juiz de Fora, Muriae, Montes Claros, Uberlândia, Governador Valadares, Ipatinga, Poços de Caldas, Sete Lagoas, Uberaba, Patos de Minas, Divinópolis, Cataguases an Ouro Preto.

## References

## Freemit airtins

*  Offeecial wabsteid 
*  Images o Minas Gerais Admeenistrative Center/Ceety
* As Minas Gerais - Biblioteca Interativa (Imenso Acervo Fotográfico de Minas Gerais) 
* Talk Aboot Minas
* Directory Steids o Minas Gerais