WE ARE 194 MILLION SOULS

On July 1 this year, the Brazilian population totaled 193,946,886, according to an estimate by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), published on August 31 in the Official Federal Gazette

According to the estimate, the population grew 1.57 million (0.81%) compared to July 2011. The projection indicates that the state of São Paulo is the most populous, with 41.9 million people (21.6% of the total population of the country).

After São Paulo, Minas Gerais is the next most populous state in Brazil (19.8 million), followed by the states of Rio de Janeiro (16.2 million), Bahia (14.1 million), Rio Grande do Sul (10.7 million), Paraná (10.5 million), Pernambuco (8.9 million) and Pará (7.7 million). São Paulo remains the most populous city in Brazil with approximately 11.4 million people (27% of state residents and 5.86% of the total population).

The dissemination of population estimates is prescribed by law and the associated statistical data is used in the calculation of federal government economic and sociodemographic indicators, while also serving as a parameter for the allocation of public policy resources and for the distribution of the States' and Municipalities' Participation Funds.

According to an IBGE resolution, the method used to estimate the size of the population will change next year. “New information related to local demographic dynamics should be incorporated and alternative methodological procedures should be included, such as those making use of economic, social and demographic variables at the municipal level,” says the text.

Source:

Agência Brasil

Largest cities or towns of Brazil 2010 Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics estimate
Rank	City Name	State	Pop.
1	São Paulo	São Paulo	11,316,149
2	Rio de Janeiro	Rio de Janeiro	6,355,949
3	Salvador	Bahia	3,093,605
4	Brasília	Distrito Federal	2,609,997
5	Fortaleza	Ceará	2,476,589
6	Belo Horizonte	Minas Gerais	2,385,639
7	Manaus	Amazonas	1,832,423
8	Curitiba	Paraná	1,764,540
9	Recife	Pernambuco	1,536,934
10	Porto Alegre	Rio Grande do Sul	1,413,094
11	Belém	Pará	1,402,056
12	Goiânia	Goiás	1,318,148
13	Guarulhos	São Paulo	1,233,426
14	Campinas	São Paulo	1,088,611
15	São Luís	Maranhão	1,027,429
16	São Gonçalo	Rio de Janeiro	1,008,064
17	Maceió	Alagoas	943,109
18	Duque de Caxias	Rio de Janeiro	861,157
19	Teresina	Piauí	822,363
20	Natal	Rio Grande do Norte	810,780