IBGE reveals that 9 out of 10 cities in Brazil are home to indigenous communities

According to data released this Monday (7) by the IBGE, 9 out of 10 cities in the country have indigenous communities, totaling almost 1.7 million individuals distributed across all Brazilian states.

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Tukumã Pataxó - Photo Reproduction/Instagram do Indigena

The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) released this Monday (07) a surprising study with the support of the National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (Funai), which reveals the significant presence of indigenous communities in virtually all regions of Brazil. According to the data collected, 9 out of 10 cities in the country are home to indigenous peoples. According to the survey, there are almost 1.7 million indigenous people spread across 4,832 cities in all states of the country.

2022 census on indigenous peoples

IBGE started mapping indigenous peoples in 1991, using the self-declaration in the item "color or race". However, from the 2022 Census, there was an intervention of the methodology, with the adoption of collaborative census cartography and the inclusion of other indigenous localities, in addition to the officially delimited lands. According to the survey carried out, the country's indigenous population reached the mark of 1,693,535 people, which corresponds to approximately 0.83% of the total population. The IBGE pointed out that more than half of this contingent (51.2%) is concentrated in the Legal Amazon region.

Compared with the previous Census, carried out in 2010, when 896,917 indigenous people were registered in the country, there is a significant increase of 88.82% in just 12 years. This means that the indigenous population practically doubled in this period. Meanwhile, the total population growth in the country was 6.5%. These data were disclosed during the event entitled "Indigenous Brazil: a new picture of the indigenous population", held in Belém (PA). This update in numbers is relevant to better understand the demographic reality of indigenous peoples in Brazil.

Indigenous presence in the regions of Brazil

Based on data collected by the IBGE, it appears that Brazil has a population of 1.7 million people who declared themselves indigenous, representing 0.8% of the total population of the country. A North region concentrates the largest portion of Brazilian indigenous people, housing 45% of this contingent, with special emphasis on the state of Amazonas, which alone has 490.9 thousand indigenous people, representing 29% of the national total.

Next, the Northeast region accounts for 31% of the country's indigenous people., with Bahia standing out as the second state with the largest number of indigenous people, totaling 229.1 thousand people. It is important to note, however, that indigenous peoples are present in all regions and in all Brazilian states. Of the 5,570 cities in the country, 4,832 are inhabited by indigenous people, corresponding to 86.8% of the total.

Indigenous presence in Brazilian cities

the 10th cities with the largest indigenous populations in Brazil, five are located in the state of Amazonas. The top of the list is occupied by the capital, Manaus, which is home to over 71,000 indigenous people. In addition, three other capitals are also part of the ranking: Salvador, with 27,740 indigenous people; Boa Vista, with 20,410; and São Paulo, with 19,777.

Here is the complete ranking by quantity:

1. Manaus (AM): 71,713 indigenous people

2. São Gabriel da Cachoeira (AM): 48,256 indigenous people

3. Tabatinga (AM): 34,497 indigenous people

4. El Salvador (BA): 27,740 indigenous

5. São Paulo de Olivença (AM): 26,619 indigenous people

6. Fishing (PE): 22,728 indigenous

7. Autazes (AM): 20,442 indigenous people

8. Boa Vista (RR): 20,410 indigenous people

9. Tefé (AM): 20,394 indigenous people

10. São Paulo (SP): 19,777 indigenous people

With regard to the proportion of indigenous population in relation to the total number of inhabitants, the municipality of Uiramutã, in Roraima, occupies the first place in the national ranking. There, almost 97% of residents identify themselves as indigenous.

Here is the complete ranking in order of proportion:

1. Uiramutã (RR): 13,283 indigenous people (96.6% of the city's population)

2. Santa Isabel do Rio Negro (AM): 13,622 indigenous people (96.2%)

3. São Gabriel da Cachoeira (AM): 48,256 indigenous people (93.2%)

4. Amaturá (AM): 9,948 indigenous (92%)

5. Normandy (RR): 12,144 indigenous (88.8%)

6. Marking (PB): 7,926 indigenous people (88.1%)

7. Baía da Traição (PB): 7,992 indigenous people (86.6%)

8. Carnaubeira da Penha (PE): 10,506 indigenous people (85.8%)

9. São Paulo de Olivença (AM): 26,619 indigenous people (80.7%)

10. São João das Missões (MG): 10,398 indigenous people (79.8%)

Although there is an indigenous presence in most cities in the country (about 4,800 cities), this presence is significantly concentrated in a few municipalities. A surprising fact is that the 100 cities with the largest self-declared indigenous population are home to more than 60% of the entire indigenous contingent in the country. This shows that the vast majority of the more than 4,800 cities have a very small proportion of indigenous residents.

To better illustrate this reality, the number of residents in about 2,100 cities that declared themselves indigenous is 10 or even less. In 450 of these cities, there is only one person who declares himself to be indigenous. These numbers show the inequality in the distribution of the indigenous population throughout the national territory, with a significant concentration in a few locations and a marked wealth in many others.