Arantina is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Minas Gerais. Its population is estimated to be 2,787 people living in a total area of 89.382 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Sul and Sudoeste de Minas and to the microregion of Andrelândia.
The municipality has an average annual median temperature of 21.2°C and the vegetation is predominantly that of the South American Atlantic Forest. With 98% of the population living within the urban area, the city had two health facilities in 2009. The Human Development Index (HDI) of the municipality is 0.736, considered average in relation to the state.
The settlement of the municipality first began in the second half of the 19th century, with the construction of a stretch of the Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas railway. Notable features of the municipality include the handcrafts it produces and annual events such as the Carnival of Arantina.
History
The area of the current municipality first began to be settled during the 19th century, when the Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas (EFOM) railroad was being constructed. The railroad was intended to link the south of Goiás state with the Angra dos Reis municipality in Rio de Janeiro state, passing through Barra Mansa, RJ and operating both passenger and cargo trains. In Arantina there was a junction between the EFOM line and the Barra Line (the name is derived from Barra do Piraí municipality), connecting Bom Jardim de Minas municipality to the Barra Mansa line, now defunct.
A small town emerged around the Arantes railway station, then situated in the municipality of Mantiqueira (today Bom Jardim de Minas). For several years the town that is today Arantina belonged to Bom Jardim de Minas. The town was known as Várzea do Paiol. In the current seat of the municipality there was a storehouse to store the corn harvested by farmer Juca Pereira, owner of much of the municipality's land.
The town consolidated itself with the manufacturing of ceramics. Given the economic growth, by state law no. 1058 of 31 December 1943, the district of Bom Jardim de Minas was created, which received its name from the railway station. Arantina was emancipated by state law no. 2764 of 30 December 1962, being officially incorporated on 1 March 1963.
Geography
The area of the municipality, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) is 89.42 km², with 0.3682 km² constituting the urban area. It is situated at a latitude of 21°54'40"S and a longitude of 44°15'21"W and is 323 km south of Belo Horizonte, the state capital of Minas Gerais. Its neighboring municipalities are Bom Jardim de Minas to the east, Andrelândia to the northwest, and Liberdade to the south.
According to the regional division of 2017, instituted by the IBGE, the municipality belongs to the Immediate and Intermediate Geographic Region of Juiz de Fora. Before this time, the municipality was included in the Microregion of Andrelândia and the Mesoregion of South and Southwest Minas.
Terrain and Hydrography
The terrain of the municipality of Arantina is predominantly hilly. Approximately 60% of the territory is covered in hilly areas, while about 30% is more mountainous, and the remaining 10% is generally flat. The highest elevation is 1,379 m found at the Serra do Caxambu and the lowest elevation is 1,030 m at the base level of the Capixingui stream in the Turvo Pequeno river. The central part of the town is at 1,050 m.
The territory is covered in various small rivers and streams, principally the Capixingui stream and the Turvo Pequeno river, making up part of the Rio Grande river basin. The Turvo Pequeno divides the municipality, and there are drainage projects for its sub-basin. Much of the water extracted from it is supplied to the towns of Arantina and Andrelândia.
Climate
The climate of Arantina is characterized, according to the IBGE, as tropical (type Cwb according to the Köppen climate classification). It has an average annual temperature of 21.2 °C with dry and cool winters and rainy summers with mild temperatures. The hottest month, January, has an average temperature of 24.1 °C, average high temperature of 29.4 °C and average low temperature of 18.9 °C. The coldest moth, July, has an average temperature of 17.3 °C, with 24.8 °C and 9.8 °C as the average high and low temperatures respectively. Autumn and spring are transitional seasons.