• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Street Smart Brazil

We teach smart Portuguese

  • Contact
  • My Account
  • Cart
  • Policies
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Service
    • Disclaimer
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Speak Portuguese With Ease
  • Home
  • About
  • Shop for Lessons
  • Starter Kit
  • Testimonials
  • Resources
  • Blog
The Making of Brasília

The Making of Brasília

posted on October 21, 2015

The Making of Brasília, Brasil
Niemeyer and a model of Brasília

It’s popular belief that Brasília is a “recent” construction, that it was built in 1956 and finished in 1960 and all thanks goes to then-president Kubitschek and architect Oscar Niemeyer (let’s not forget Lúcio Costa).

The reality, though, is that Brasília was thought up in 1749 by the Portuguese Marquês de Pombal, or possibly by his cartographer who visited Goiás at the time.

Every once in a while the idea of building it was brought up again and plans to make it happen were created. It was only in the 1890s with the writing of the first Constitution of the Brazilian Republic that the project was officially mentioned by the government with a general region for its placement chosen as well. Article 3 of Constitution says “It belongs to the Union, in the central highlands of the Republic, an area of 14,400 square kilometers, which will shortly be demarcated for establishing on it the future federal capital.” Still, nothing was done to make it happen.

Fast-forward to 1956 and the election of a new president, Juscelino Kubitschek (aka JK). The plan to create a Brasília-like city had been picking up steam again in the decade prior and JK was the first person, in a long line of many, to actually move on it.

It might have been “50 years of prosperity in 5 years time” (Juscelino Kubitscheck’s motto), but it was two centuries on the mind.

Share ... Share on twitter
Twitter
Share on google
Google
Share on facebook
Facebook
Share on linkedin
Linkedin
Share on pinterest
Pinterest
Share on email
Email

Related Posts:

  • 4 language learning hacks for your Portuguese
  • Brazilian Portuguese Pronunciation: Words ending in IA -…
  • 5 Brazilian Rock Bands that You Need to Know

About Adam Lee

Adam is a writer and a researcher who has studied Brazilian culture for over a decade and created several Brazil-themed blogs going back to 2008. Having taught himself Portuguese, he put it to practical use by spending three years doing Brazil on a budget (and living in favelas), from Rio de Janeiro to the Amazon.

He now resides in Lisbon, Portugal, developing a startup and dreaming about having a beachside B&B in the Northeast of Brazil.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Roy Kenny

    October 21, 2015 at 10:31 am

    Your insight are right on. We were in Brasil when “Kubischek’s Folly” took place. Even when we were living in Rio and the government was functioning in Brasilia, many government people lived still in Rio and flew in for work in Brasilia.
    Roy

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Want to see your pic by your comment? Get a free custom avatar at Gravatar.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Categories

  • Brazil
  • Brazilian music
  • Brazilian Portuguese
  • Business Culture
  • Culture and History
  • Flashcards
  • Food
  • Grammar
  • Idiomatic Expressions
  • Learning Languages
  • Pronunciation
  • Resources
  • Video lessons
  • Visiting Brazil
  • Vocabulary

Schedule a Trial Session

Testimonials

I highly recommend Street Smart Brazil. They’ll have you speaking Portuguese in surprisingly little time and you’ll learn a lot about Brazil and its people and culture.
Kenneth
Streetsmart Brazil has great teachers. They are interested in creating a learning experience that I look forward to every week. I’ve progressed and become comfortable with my use and understanding of… Read more
Bill B.
I am really enjoying my lessons. My teacher is so patient with me which really puts my nerves at ease as I struggle a lot with confidence. I feel already more and more comfortable and confident speaki… Read more
Theodora
Street Smart Brazil is in my opinion the very best site for Portuguese learners on the web. Their teachers and lessons are definitely five-star quality. They not only teach you the language, but in a… Read more
Jack

Find Resources

Make your learning fun and easy with good resources.
Learn More

51 Portuguese Idioms – Speak Like a Brazilian

You will learn each expression inside a real-life context: everyday situations that could happen to any of us.
Purchase Now >

Recent Posts

  • Meio or Meia? How to say KIND OF in Portuguese
  • Family Vocabulary in Portuguese
  • The Power of Rehearsal to Improve Language Learning
  • Learn the Numbers in Portuguese: All you need to know
  • The Difference Between ESTE, ESSE, ISSO in Portuguese

Search

Cart

Classes

  • Trial Lesson
  • One-on-One Portuguese Lessons via Video Meetings – Subscription
  • One-on-One Portuguese Lessons via Video Meetings – Packages
  • Celpe-Bras Prep Classes with Street Smart Brazil

Footer Subscribe

Books

  • 51 Portuguese Idioms
  • Master the Word MESMO in Portuguese

Footer Video CTA

Subscribe to my YouTube channel to get all the new video lessons

Subscribe

https://youtu.be/Q8ONwVoTG9M

Footer Full CTA

Book a Trial Lesson today to get started.

Get Started Now

Footer CTA

Street Smart Brazil

  • About
  • Shop For a Portuguese Class
  • Testimonials
  • Blog

Portuguese Classes

  • Trial Lesson
  • One-on-One Portuguese Lessons via Video Meetings – Subscription
  • One-on-One Portuguese Lessons via Video Meetings – Packages
  • Celpe-Bras Prep Classes with Street Smart Brazil

Books

  • 51 Portuguese Idioms
  • Master the Word MESMO in Portuguese


Street Smart Brazil, LLC

phone 415.573.8180
email info@streetsmartbrazil.com
Oakland, California

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Disclaimer
  • Sitemap

© 2014–2023 Street Smart Brazil, All Rights Reserved | Website by Web Savvy Marketing