Back Minas Gerais Afrikaans Minas Gerais AN ميناس جرايس Arabic Minas Gerais AST Minas Gerais Istadu Aymara Minas-Jerays Azerbaijani Мінас-Жэрайс Byelorussian Мінас-Жэрайс BE-X-OLD Минас Жерайс Bulgarian মিনাস জেরায়িস BPY
State of Minas Gerais | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
| Motto(s): Libertas Quae Sera Tamen (Latin) "Freedom albeit Late" | |
 Location of State of Minas Gerais in Brazil | |
| Coordinates: 19°49′S 43°57′W / 19.817°S 43.950°W | |
| Country |  Brazil |
| Capital and Largest City | Belo Horizonte |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Romeu Zema (Novo) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 586,528.29 km2 (226,459.84 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 4th |
| Population (2012)[1] | |
| • Total | 19,855,332 |
| • Rank | 2nd |
| • Density | 34/km2 (88/sq mi) |
| • Rank | 14th |
| Demonym | Mineiro |
| GDP | |
| • Year | 2006 estimate |
| • Total | R$ 214,814,000,000 (3rd) |
| • Per capita | R$ 11,028 (10th) |
| HDI | |
| • Year | 2005 |
| • Category | 0.800 – high (9th) |
| Time zone | UTC-3 (BRT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-2 (BRST) |
| Postal Code | 30000-000 to 39990-000 |
| ISO 3166 code | BR-MG |
| Website | mg.gov.br |
Minas Gerais (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈminɐs ʒeˈɾajs]) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. It has the second highest number of people. It has the fourth largest area. The capital is the city of Belo Horizonte, near the center of the state. The name means "General mines". Minas Gerais was formed mainly by colonists searching for gold, gemstones and diamonds.