Paraná (, ; ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, in the south of the country. It is bordered in the north by São Paulo state, in the east by the Atlantic Ocean, in the south by Santa Catarina and the Argentine province of Misiones, and in the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and Paraguay, with the Paraná River as its western boundary. It is subdivided into 399 municipalities, and its capital is the city of Curitiba. Other major cities are Londrina, Maringá, Ponta Grossa, Cascavel, São José dos Pinhais and Foz do Iguaçu. The state is home to 5.4% of the Brazilian population and generates 6.2% of the Brazilian GDP.
Crossed by the Tropic of Capricorn, Paraná has what is left of the araucaria forest, one of the most important subtropical forests in the world. At the border with Argentina is the National Park of Iguaçu, considered by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. from there, at the border with Paraguay, the largest dam in the world was built, the Hidroelétrica de Itaipu (Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam). The crime rate is considered low by Brazilian standards and the state is one of the most developed ones in the nation, ranking 4th in gross domestic product, only behind the states of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Minas Gerais.
History
Before the discovery of the region by European explorers, indigenous populations inhabited the region for thousands of years. This included the Carijó in the lands closer to the sea, from the Tupi group, and the Caingangues in the interior, who belonged to the Jê group.
Colonisation of the state by settlers started in the 16th century, but was mainly confined to the coasts. Being a region mostly abandoned by the Portuguese, the region was explored by other European countries, who searched primarily for brazilwood.
In the 1940s, the northern part of the state was settled as a result of the expansion of the São Paulo coffee industry. The south-eastern part of the state was settled as a result of migration from Rio Grande do Sul.
Geography
thumb|left|[[Iguazu Falls]]
thumb|right|upright=1.1|alt=Map of Paraná showing tree-cover loss years, with forest remaining since 2000 in green and loss years shaded yellow through purple.|Tree-cover loss year in Paraná, 2001-2024, from the [[Global Forest Change dataset.]]
Paraná is bounded on the north by São Paulo state, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Santa Catarina state and the Misiones Province of Argentina, and on the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and the republic of Paraguay, with the Paraná River as its western boundary line.
The state can be separated into five main topographic areas, from east to west: a coastal zone, the mountains of Serra do Mar, and then three plateaus, each lower than the other, until the Paraná River is reached.
Climate
thumb|Climate types of Paraná
thumb|[[Araucaria angustifolia|Araucaria is a symbol of Paraná.]]
According to the Köppen climate classification, the north and west of the state, and the east coast, is of the Cfa climate type, with the remainder being Cfb. An alternative analysis using the ECMWF model indicates that the Aw and Cwa Köppen types appear in the north. The northern part of the state is the convergence point between the Tropical Atlantic and Equatorial Continental air masses.
Temperature and precipitation
The annual mean air temperature ranges between 15 and 24°, with the highest temperatures found in the northwest and the lowest around Palmas, In the coastal plain minimum average temperatures range between .
Precipitation is less than a year in the north of the state, rising to above in the southwest and southeast of the state.Parana is the sixth most populous state in Brazil. Its level of urbanization is 83.5%.
Ethnic groups
thumb|upright|[[Ukrainian Brazilians|Ukrainian memorial in Curitiba]]
The 2022 census survey gave the following breakdown by race for the state: 7,389,932 White (64.6%), 3,440,037 Mixed (30.1%), 485,781 Black (4.2%), 100,244 Asian (0.9%), and 28,000 Amerindian (0.2%).
Parana's white population is primarily descendant of Portuguese, Italian, Polish and Ukrainian immigrants, but many German families also settled in the state. A variation of German known as Paraná-Wolga-Deutsch originated in the area.
Initially settled by the Guarani and Kaingang Amerindians, until the 17th century, virtually no European presence existed in Paraná. The number of settlers grew around 1750 and the population was composed of Amerindians, Portuguese, and some Spaniards. African slaves from Angola and Mozambique were also present, but in fewer numbers than in other Brazilian areas, because Paraná was an unexplored region that did not need much slave manpower. As part of the province of São Paulo, immigration grew in the mid-19th century, mostly composed of Italian, German, Polish, Ukrainian, and Japanese peoples. While large numbers of Poles and Ukrainians are present in Paraná, their presence in the rest of Brazil is relatively small, especially Ukrainians. In the early 20th century, two waves of migration to Paraná occurred: one coming from the north, mostly of Portuguese, but also of African and Amerindian origin, and another from southern Brazil to the southwest and west, mostly of Portuguese, Italian, and German origins.
Major cities
Most populous cities in Parana