Maceio

The name "Maceió" has origin in the Tupi term maçayó or maçaio-k, that means "that which covers the swamp". The Aurélio Dictionary says that the term "maceió" means a temporary and cyclic lagoon that is located at the edge of the sea at the mouth of a watercourse small enough to be interrupted by a sand bar until the high tide opens the way temporarily - cyclically relates to the season, river flow, lunar phase, etc. Nineteenth-century shipping reports, which reported on ships bringing cotton from Maceió, spelt it as Macaio.

The city began in an old sugar mill and plantation complex around the 19th century. Its development started with the arrival of ships taking wood from Jaraguá bay. With the installation of the sugar mills, Maceió started to export sugar, then tobacco, coconut, leather, and some spices. Prosperity made it possible for the settlement to become a village on December 5, 1815. Thanks to its continued growth, Maceió became the capital of the Alagoas state on December 9, 1839. Maceió is also a port city and due to its port development about 200 years ago it changed from a village into a city. Maceió was reportedly hit hard by the 2015–16 Zika virus epidemic. 75% of all cases in Brazil were claimed to be registered in Alagoas. The cause for this concentration was never found. …

The city is located between the Mundaú Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean, with a tropical climate with average temperature of 25 °C (77 °F). As of 2021, its metropolitan area had a total population of 1,354,973 inhabitants. Maceió has a typical tropical climate, specifically a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification: Am, somewhat bordering on As), with very warm to hot temperatures and high relative humidity all throughout the year. However, these conditions are relieved by a near absence of extreme temperatures due to trade winds blowing from the ocean. January is the warmest month, with mean maximum of 32 °C (89.6 °F) and minimum of 22 °C (71.6 °F) and more sun; July experiences the coolest temperatures, with mean maximum of 27 °C (80.6 °F) and minimum of 17 °C (62.6 °F) accompanied by higher humidity and much more rain. …

One substantial local industry is based on chemical products from brine pumped from deep wells on the outskirts of Maceió. Another substantial industry is the production of ethanol and sugar from sugarcane grown in the region. In the last thirty years the tourist industry has transformed the coastal areas of the city into vibrant centers of entertainment for Brazilian and foreign tourists (Americans, Italians, French, Germans, Argentinians, etc.). These coastal neighborhoods include coconut palm trees, playgrounds, squares, open-to-the-public football, volleyball, and basketball fields, residential buildings, bars, nightclubs, tourist-oriented shops, restaurants, banks, hotels, and gambling houses (slot machines and bingo only, since casino games are illegal in Brazil). The GDP for the city was R$23,400,000,000 (as of 2019); The per capita income for the city was R$22,976. …

Maceió is served by Maceió Urban Rail, a light rail system. Zumbi dos Palmares International Airport located outside Maceió serves the area with international connections to Lisbon in Portugal and Buenos Aires in Argentina, as well as cities throughout Brazil. In 2021 the airport handled 1,893,812 passengers. The Port of Jaraguá is a Brazilian port located in Maceió. The commercial and economic development of the Port of Jaraguá, next to the margins of the Mundaú lagoon, was responsible for the emergence of an important settlement that received the name of Maceió and later became the present capital of Alagoas. The Port of Jaraguá is situated in a natural port area that facilitates the ships docking. During the Brazilian colonial period, the most important products exported from there port were sugar, tobacco, coconut and spices. …