Demographics of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro City is home to more than 6 million people, accounting for about 35% of the population of Rio de Janeiro State. Portuguese remains the most widely spoken language and Rio de Janeiro is the second city in the Portuguese speaking world.
History of Rio de Janeiro
Coffee production and the transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil in 1808 again brought prosperity to the colony. By 1815, when Brazil became a kingdom, Rio de Janeiro was large enough to accommodate a foreign population. At about that time the city's original appearance was being transformed; from 1808 to 1818 some 600 houses and 100 country houses were built and older buildings were restored. Many streets were lighted and paved, more land was reclaimed, new roads were opened, and new public fountains were installed. Among new institutions established were the Royal Press, the Royal Library, the Theatre of Saint John, the Academy of Fine Arts, the Botanical Garden, and the Bank of Brazil. When King John VI returned to Portugal in 1821, Rio had almost 113,000 inhabitants and 13,500 buildings, and the town had extended both northward and southward. A year later Brazil was independent.