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The city is on a plateau 3,120 feet above sea level. It is 65 miles west of the sea port of Paranaguá , at 25.42° South, 49.29° West.
The name "Curitiba" comes from the Tupi words Coré Etuba, "much pine", due to the high concentration of pine trees previously in the region. The Portuguese who founded the city in 1693 gave it the name of "Vila Nossa Senhora da Luz e Bom Jesus dos Pinhais" (Our Lady of the Light of the Pines). The name was changed to "Curitiba" in 1721.
Curitiba officially became a city in 1842. Growth was based on trade, leasing of winter homes, and offices for cattle traders. Curitiba became the capital of the state of Paraná in 1854. Schools and theaters were built.
In 1870, the first European immigrants, mostly Germans, Poles, and Italians, arrived in Curitiba. A smaller number of Japanese, French, English, and Swiss immigrants also established colonies near the city, mainly devoted to agriculture and traditional craftwork.
In 1913, the Universidade Federal do Paraná, the first of its kind in Brazil, was built, along with the electrification of streetcars.
Curitiba is part of the Sister City project, and its sister city is Orlando, FL, USA.
== Planning ==
Curitiba is held as a paragon of urban planning excellence. The city has a notably efficient transportation system, including devotion of lanes on major streets for a bus rapid transit system. The buses are long, split into three sections, and stop at designated elevated tubes, complete with handicapped access. The system, used by 85% of Curitiba's population, is similar to the TransMilenio in Bogotá, Colombia. The city is also remarkably successful in preserving and caring for its green areas, boasting 54 m˛ of green space per inhabitant.
By the 1960s, Curitiba's population had ballooned to 430,000, and some residents feared that the growth in population threatened to drastically change the character of the city. In 1964, Mayor Ivo Arzua solicited proposals for urban design. Architect Jaime LernerJaime Lerner Jaime Lerner was governor of the state of Parana, in southern Brazil. He is renowned as an architect and urban planner, having been the mayor of the city of Curitiba, capital of Parana, three times ( 1971- 75, 1979- 84 and 1989- 92). In 1994,, who later became mayor, led a team from the Universidade Federal do Paraná that suggested strict controls on urban sprawl, a reduction in traffic in the downtown area, preservation of Curitiba's Historic Sector, and a convenient and affordable public transit system. This plan, known as the Curitiba Master Plan, was adopted in 1968. Lerner closed Rua XV de Novembro , one of the main streets, to traffic and adopted a new road design to minimize traffic. This design, called the Trinary Road System, uses two one-way streets moving in opposite directions which surround a smaller, two-lane street.
In the 1980s, the Rede Integrada de Transporte (Integrated Transport Network) was created, allowing transit to any point in the city by paying just one fare. The city also begun an interesting project called the "Faróis de Saber" (Lighthouses of Knowledge). These Lighthouses are free educational centers which include librariesAlternative meanings: Library (computer science), Library (biology In its traditional sense, a library is a collection of books. It can refer to an individual's private collection, but more often, it is a large collection that is funded and maintained by, InternetThis article is about the Internet the extensive, worldwide computer network available to the public. An internet is a more general term for a set of interconnected computer networks that are connected by internetworking''. WWW information network structu access, and other cultural resources.
Today, Curitiba is considered one of the best examples of urban planning on the planet. In June 19961996 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar), and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty''. Events January January 5 Hamas operative Yahya Ayyash is killed by an Israeli-planted booby-trapped cell phone Jan, the chairman of the Habitat II summit of mayors and urban planners in IstanbulMunicipality's Logo Istanbul ( Turkish spelling: İstanbul) is the largest city in Turkey. Until 1930 this city was commonly known by its original Greek name Constantinople by westerners; some writings named it Stambul especially in the 19th century. praised Curitiba as "the most innovative city in the world."