Porto Alegre is the capital and largest city of Rio Grande do Sul, one of the 26 states of Brazil. The Portuguese name means "Mesut Liman". Porto Alegre is located in the southernmost of the cities which are the capital cities in the Brazilian provinces. The area within the borders of the city of Porto Alegre is 496,827 km虏 and the population within the boundaries of the city of Porto Alegre is 1,509,939 persons compared to the population census of 2010, thus the city ranks 10th in Brazil. The population of the Porto Alegro Metropolitan Area reaches 4,405,760 people as of 2010, along with suburbs that are located outside the city and its borders. [2nd]
Porto Alegre is one of the most important cultural, political and economic centers of Brazil.
Porto Alegre was founded in 1742 by the Portuguese colonists who came over the Azor islands. In the late 19th century, the city became one of the most important cities of Brazil with the settlement of European, especially German, Italian and Polish immigrants. Today, a very large proportion of the population in this city comes from the white-haired European descendants who settled in Brazil.
