State
The flag of Maranhão was created by Joaquim de Sousa Andrade. The flag consists of nine stripes in a horizontal direction, interspersed, four white, three red and two black, with a blue canton occupying a third of the length of the flag and half of its width, in the top left with a white star in the center. The three colors of the stripes represent the ethnic composition of the population of Maranhão, while the star represents Beta Scorpii, which in turn represents the state of Maranhão on the Flag of Brazil.
Maranhão is a state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of 332,000 km2 (128,000 sq mi) and it is divided into 217 municipalities. Clockwise from north, it borders on the Atlantic Ocean for 2,243 km and the states of Piauí, Tocantins and Pará. The people of Maranhão have a distinctive accent within the common Northeastern Brazilian dialect. Maranhão is described in literary works such as Exile Song by Gonçalves Dias and Casa de Pensão by Aluísio Azevedo.
Maranhao is one of the 27 states of the Federative Republic of Brazil.
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