What does rio de janeiro mean in english
Mia Cox
Updated on January 31, 2026
What does Rio de Janeiro mean?
The name was given to the city’s original site by Portuguese navigators who arrived on January 1, 1502, and mistook the entrance of the bay for the mouth of a river (rio is the Portuguese word for “river” and janeiro the word for “January”). …What does Janeiro mean?
Janeiro is the Portuguese word for January. It may also refer to: “Janeiro”, abbreviation for Rio de Janeiro or Rio de Janeiro (state)What was Rio de Janeiro named after?
| Rio de Janeiro | |
|---|---|
| Historic countries | Kingdom of Portugal United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves Empire of Brazil |
| Settled | 1555 |
| Founded | 1 March 1565 |
| Named for | Saint Sebastian |