Tocantins () is one of the 26 states of Brazil. It is the newest state, formed in 1988 and encompassing what had formerly been the northern two-fifths of the state of Goiás.
Geography
thumb|left|[[Amazon rainforest]]
The geography of Tocantins is varied. It straddles both the Amazon rainforest and the coastal savanna. Many rivers (including the Tocantins River) traverse the state. Researchers have identified more than 20 archaeologically significant sites related to indigenous cultures.
Tocantins is bordered to the northeast by the states of Maranhão and Piauí, Bahia to the east, Goiás to the south, Mato Grosso to the west, and Pará to the northwest. Tocantins was created from the northern two-fifths of Goiás state in 1989 and is divided into 139 municipalities.
Vegetation
thumb|right|upright=1.1|alt=Map of Tocantins showing tree-cover loss years, with forest remaining since 2000 in green and loss years shaded yellow through purple.|Tree-cover loss year in Tocantins, 2001-2024, from the [[Global Forest Change dataset.]]
thumb|[[Serra Geral do Tocantins Ecological Station]]
The "cerrado" landscape cover 87% of Tocantins and is characterized by extensive savanna formations crossed by gallery forests and stream valleys. A strong separatist movement developed in the north for independence of its people.
After the government levied heavy taxes on mining in 1809, local residents began to organize a separatists movement. They made a minor revolt which was quickly crushed by the army. In the 19th century, a string of failed uprisings occurred in the north. Historically the area was inhabited chiefly by Amerindians in some intact indigenous tribes and pardos of Amerindian and Portuguese descent.
In the 1970s, the population of northern Goiás lobbied the government to establish a separate state. In the 1988 Constitution, the State of Tocantins was created and admitted as a new Brazilian state.
The 2022 census revealed the following numbers: 939,260 Pardos (brown, multiracial) people (62.1%), 350,613 White people (23.2%), 199,394 Black people (13.2%), 18,735 Amerindian people (1.2%), 3,405 Asian people (0.2%).