Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (in Portuguese, Federative Republic of Brazil) is a federal republic made up of 26 federal states and the Federal District, divided into 5,564 municipalities. Brazilian territory covers the eastern half, or about 47.9% - of South America and some groups of islands in the Atlantic Ocean, which together amount to an estimated more than 8.5 million km ², which occupies fifth place globally in the territory, and has boundaries with all South American countries except Chile and Ecuador. To the north is bordered by Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, south by Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and the west by Bolivia and Peru. Brazil is also the fifth in population.

For the most part, the country is between the terrestrial tropics, so the seasons are not in a radical way in much the same. Much of its territory is covered by the Amazon forest, with 3.6 million square kilometers. Thanks to this, and its climate is the country with more animal species in the world.

Originally inhabited by Amerindians, Brazil was in the beginning segment of the American continent that corresponded to the kingdom of Portugal after the Treaty of Tordesillas. The country gained its independence on September 7, 1822. Its capital is Brasilia, which replaced Rio de Janeiro in 1960 and that by far the former capital of Brazil. Salvador de Bahia, having been the first national capital, Brasilia is the third time be the capital city of Brazil.

Its population is 198.8 million, according to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Despite being the fifth most populous country in the world, Brazil has one of the lowest rates of population density. Most of its population is concentrated along the coast, while the country is still marked by huge gaps demographic. Portuguese colonization, Brazil is the only Portuguese speaking country in the Americas. Religion is the most followers Catholicism remains the country with the largest number of nominal Catholics in the world. Brazilian society is one of the most multi-planet formed by descendants of Europeans, Indians, Africans and Asians.