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Palmares

Palmares may refer to several subjects in Brazil, most notably a historic Afro-Brazilian community and a modern municipality, as well as a geographical term.

The Quilombo dos Palmares was a large and long-standing settlement of escaped slaves in the northeastern frontier

Palmares is also the name of a municipality in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Located in the

The term palmares derives from the Portuguese palmar, meaning a palm grove or stands of palm trees,

of
colonial
Brazil,
existing
during
the
17th
century.
Its
territory
covered
parts
of
present-day
Pernambuco
and
Alagoas,
with
its
strongest
stronghold
around
Serra
da
Barriga
near
the
modern
city
of
União
dos
Palmares
in
Alagoas.
The
quilombo
functioned
as
a
loose
federation
of
settlements
and
is
estimated
to
have
housed
thousands
to
tens
of
thousands
of
people
at
its
peak,
maintaining
a
degree
of
autonomy
through
fortified
towns
and
alliances.
It
endured
for
several
decades
amid
continuous
attacks
by
Portuguese
forces
and
colonial
auxiliaries,
before
being
destroyed
in
1694–1695.
Zumbi
dos
Palmares,
one
of
its
most
renowned
leaders,
has
become
a
symbol
of
Afro-Brazilian
resistance;
his
death
on
November
20
is
commemorated
in
Brazil
as
Black
Awareness
Day.
interior
Zona
da
Mata
region,
its
economy
features
agriculture
and
light
industry,
with
a
population
in
the
tens
of
thousands.
The
town
has
cultural
and
historical
significance
within
its
region
and
serves
as
a
local
hub
for
surrounding
communities.
and
is
used
in
geographic
names
to
denote
places
once
characterized
by
palm
groves.