Last modified: 2012-03-03 by ian macdonald
Keywords: parana | palmas |
Links: FOTW homepage |
search |
disclaimer and copyright |
write us |
mirrors
![[Flag of Palmas, PR (Brazil)]](../images/b/br-pr-249.gif)
image by Dirk Schönberger,
7 September 2011Vertically divided red-white-green, with the municipal arms centred on the white field.
Official website at http://www.pmp.pr.gov.br
Dirk Schönberger, 7 September 2011
The municipality of Palmas (42,887 inhabitants in 2010; 1,567 ha) is located
in central southern Paraná, on the border with Santa Catalina, 380 km of
Curitiba. Built at an elevation of 1,115m, Palmas has the oldest permanent
settlements in Paraná and is the coldest town in the state, with an average
temperature of 16 deg C. Palmas and the neighboring region ("Campos de Palmas",
lit. "Palm groves") were discovered in 1720-1726 by Zacarias Dias Côrte, a
pioneer from Curitiba seeking gold. The name of "Campos de Palmas" was coined
by Major Atanagildo Pinto Martins, who commanded a Royal expedition in
1814-1819. The expedition was guided by the cacique Yongong, who explained
that the region was well-known to the natives as Bituruna / Ibituruna, "The
Highlands / The Palm Lands". However, the local historian Roselys Velloso
Roderjan believes that the Major rather named the place "Campos de Palmas" as
a tribute to the Count of Palma, then President of the São Paulo Province, to
which today's Paraná belonged at the time. The parish of Palmas was
established by Provincial Law No. 22 of 28 February 1855. Law No. 155,
adopted in 1838, prescribed the building of a road linking Guarapuava to
Palmas. Law No. 484 of 13 April 1877 made of the Vila do Senhor Bom Jesus dos
Campos de Palmas the seat of a municipality, inaugurated on 14 April 1879.
The Bishopric "Senhor Bom Jesus da Coluna dos Campos de Palmas", with its
seat in Palmas, was established on 14 January 1958. The Palmas Question
was a bone of contention between Brazil and Argentina, which both claimed
sovereignty on the Campos de Palmas. The Treaty of Montevideo, signed on 25
January 1890 between Argentina and the Provisory Government of the new
Brazilian Republic, shared the disputed area between the two countries;
however, the Brazilian Congress rejected it in 1891, claiming that the
Minister who had signed the treaty was legally not allowed to leave parts of
the national territory to Argentina. Commissioned for arbitration,
President of the USa Grover Cleveland stated on 5 February 1895 that the
disputed territory should remain Brazilian. The town of Clevelândia, located
in the disputed area, was named as a tribute to the American president.
The symbols of Palmas are prescribed by Municipal Law No. 458 of 21 May
1971. The symbols were drafted by His Grace Jorge Antônio da Costa Guimarães,
Bishop of Palmas-Francisco Beltrão, while the details of the arms were
completed by Josué Guimarães.
On the flag, red represents faith,
associated to the cloak of Lord Jesus of the Column of the Palm Groves ("Bom
Jesus da Coluna dos Campos de Palmas",
http://portalrbj.com.br/noticia.php?Id=4928
- image), the patron saint of the town since 6 August 1838. The faith
protected the early pioneers, who materially and spiritually developed the
vast area limited by rivers Iguaçu and Uruguay. White is a symbol of peace,
also representing frost and snow common in winter in the region. Green is
a symbol of hope, representing the forests and fields.
The coat of arms
is of classical shape and surmounted by a mural crown. It depicts the column
of Lord Jesus of the Palm Groves, erected in front of the Bishop's palace,
surrounded dexter by two araucarias, recalling the forests at the origin of
the development of the local industry and that Palmas is one of the biggest
producers of timber in southern Brazil, and sinister by a bovine, recalling
that cattle-breeding was a pioneer activity in the region. The shield is
surrounded by a branch of yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis) and a palm.
Yerba maté was one of the early sources of income while the native palm tree
is the namesake of the town. The colors of the field are green and yellow.
http://www.pmp.pr.gov.br/intranet/bandeira.php
On the image of the
flag, the coat of arms is shown with little colour. The coat of arms in full
colors does not seem to be used on the real flag, as (partially) seen on a
photo taken in the Palmas Campus of the Paraná Federal Institute.
http://palmas.ifpr.edu.br/2011/12/campus-lanca-programa-mulheres-mil/
http://palmas.ifpr.edu.br/wp-content/uploads/2011/
Ivan Sache, 20 February 2012
