Pirapora

**Pirapora** is a municipality *([[Municipalities o Brazil|município]])* in northcentral Minas Gerais in Brazil.  Its population in 2014 wis 55,972 in a total aurie o 577&nbsp;km². The name Pirapora comes frae the Tupi wirds for "fish" + "jump", referrin tae the piracema saison when a mass migration o fishes ascends the São Francisco River tae spawn.

## Location
Pirapora belangs tae its awn statistical microregion.  The elevation o the municipal seat is 472 meters.  It became a municipality in 1912.  This municipality is locatit on the richt bank o the São Francisco River an is 340&nbsp;km. frae the state caipital.

Neebourin municipalities are: Lagoa Grande, Coromandel, Guarda-Mor, Lagamar an Paracatu.  Thare are twa destricts, besides the municipal seat: Claro de Minas, 12&nbsp;km. distant, an Vazamor, 32&nbsp;km. distant.

## History
The ceety is locatit on the richt bank o the great São Francisco River, the langest river tae flow entirely inside Brazilian territory.  Its history goes back tae the colonial period o the bandeirantes an the gowd panhandlers who follaeed the river upstream, arrivit at the rapids o Pirapora an foondit the dounset o São Gonçalo das Tabocas.  In 1911 the smaw Arraial de São Gonçalo de Pirapora became the seat o a municipality an its name wis shortened tae Pirapora.  Its street plan wis laid oot in the shape o a chess set, inspired bi the new caipital o Belo Horizonte, an the streets wur gien names o Brazilian states.

Thare are heich-gate connections wi the main federal heich-gate, the BR 040, tae the wast.  In 1910 the railwey came up frae the sooth an reached Pirapora, wi a brig (694 m) bein built athort the river. Thare wur plans tae extend the line tae the coast.  At the end o the nineteen seiventies the line wis deactivatit, but the brig an the rails still remain.

The day the river haes lost its economic importance an is mainly uised bi tourist boats that attempt tae recreate the spirit o the past, when Mississippi style riverboats wur uised tae go as far as Juazeiro in Bahia.  These boats uised charcoal, which contributit tae the disappearance o the vegetation alang the river.  Ane o the auld paddle wheel steamboats, the Benjamim Guimarães, can still be seen anchored in front o the ceety an is a major tourist steid.

## The economy
The main economic activities are industry, cattle raisin, fermin (baith extensive mechanisit an subsistence), guids an services, an tourism.  The GDP for 2005 was R$662,985,000.  In the landwart aurie thare wur 605 ferms an a total agricultural aurie o 57,000 hectares, o which 38,000 ha. wur plantit, 14,000 wur in natural pastur, an 13,000 ha. wur in firthland o forest.  2,800 fowk wur dependent on fermin.  107 o the ferms haed tractors.  In 2006 thare wur 9,600 heid o cattle.  Wi irrigation Pirapora haes become a major producer o tropical fruits, growin eatin grapes, papaya, mangoes, cantaloupe, an guava. Thare is production on a smawer scale o corn, beans, rice, manioc, tomatoes, lettuce, an bananas an aw.

Accordin tae the ceety govrenment steid, Pirapora is the seicont maist important ceety in the north o Minas, efter Montes Claros, in industrial ootput.  Thare is a industrial pairk whaur several smaw an middlin industries are instawed.  Airn silicon, metallic silicon, an textiles are producit.

## Halth an eddication
In 2005 thare wur 39 health establishments—25 public an 14 private.  Thare wis 01 public hospital an 02 private hospitals.  The nummer o hospital beds wis 133.  The Centro Regional de Saúde da Visão is a public clinic that specializes in eye surgery an attracts patients frae aw ower the north o Minas Gerais.

In 2007 thare wur three institutes o heicher learnin in the ceety:  Instituto Educacional Santo Agostinho (private), União de Ensino de Minas Gerais Ltda (private), and UNIMONTES-Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros (public).

The score on the Municipal Human Development Index wis 0.758.  Pirapora wis rankit 235 oot o 853 municipalities in the state, wi Poços de Caldas in first place wi 0.841 an Setubinha in last place wi 0.568.

## References

## Freemit airtins
*Faculdades Santo Agostinho
* Ceety govrenment steid