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River of January

Filed under: Ask Us - January 6th, 2006

Your Question

Could you tell me what the name of the city of Re de Janeiro means?

Our Reply

Literally translated “Rio de Janeiro” means “River of January.” This magnificent city came by this name when on January 1st 1502 the Portuguese captain Andre Goncalves and his crew discovered Guanabara Bay; believing this bay was a mouth of a great river they named the area “River of January.”