Ibiraúna

Ibiraúna is a province of Maracatibe, located in the southwest region, limited to the northwest by Catão, to the northeast by Pombal and to the south by Montité.  It was incorporated in 1948, when the province of Montité was divided between Montité, Pombal and Ibiraúna, as at the time it was the largest province in the country and it was expected that the division would facilitate administration.  Its population is 890,700 inhabitants, making it the 18th most populous subdivision of Maracatibe (population only higher than Pombal, Salgado and Serra Verde).  The capital and largest city is Pirapiranguaçu, which has 293,931 inhabitants (2020).  Ibiraúna is known for its great, which supports .  In addition to tourism, the and  is also important for the provincial economy.  In terms of socioeconomic development, Ibiraúna stands out among the provinces of the southwest region, having all the best rates, such as income,  , , and violence.

Its name comes from the ybyrá (wood) and una (black, dark), and it was the name given by the Kwaba to the region between the Auaporí river, in the north, and the Moriquê river, in the south. Despite this, this name is an, since the peoples who populated the region never referred to their land using that term. Before colonization, the Ibiraúna region was disputed between the Guarai, the Beta Kwaba and the Machapi (peoples that today are equivalent to the Kiepki and Lachipi), belonging for the most part to the last two, with the exception of the Taraonian era, in the 13th century, when the Guaray dominated the region. At the beginning of colonization, it became the scene of major battles between Jungastian and native peoples of the Alliance. Like other provinces in the interior of the south, it suffered a lot from the Maracatibean Conflict, as it was an area of ​​strong action by communist guerrillas. However, the government's campaign in that region was most successful, and Ibiraúna was the least affected of the southwestern provinces.

Its population is quite diverse, and the ethnic composition is very similar to that of Maracatibe. However, the number of other natives, such as the Kiepki and Lachipi, in addition to other groups from the interior, is greater. The predominant language is, but several native languages ​​and dialects are spoken, such as Lachipi and Machipi, in addition to 15 other languages ​​spoken by very few tribes. The Kwaba spoken in Ibiraúna is the inner Kwaba, or Beta Kwaba, which presents some differences in the lexicon and strong accent differences in relation to the Kwaba spoken in the east.