Itamaraju


Itamaraju is a municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil. "Itamaraju" is a word from the Tupi language meaning "rock of the trees of Jucuruçu" from the terms itá, mara, and ju.

History

On 22 April 1500 a Portuguese fleet under the command of the explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral, seen by many as the first European to arrive in Brazil, recorded their sighting of Monte Pascoal which became a European settlement and, subsequently, the municipality of Prado. Itamaraju became and until 1961 remained a piece of the territory of Prado. On 5 October 1961 Itamaraju formally obtained municipal autonomy, its separation from Prado led by José Gomes de Almeida and Antônio Fontes Mascarenhas.