Unlike the happened one in other states, the colonization of Piauí has not registered in its history pirate or foreign invasions. There the occupation was made, firstly, by bandeirantes (people that as of century XVI penetrated in the inner territories of Brazil, in search of wealth or of Indians and black to enslave them).

In century XVII, the colonization continued on the initiative of impoverished Portuguese nobles and by the clergy, particularly of the Order of the Jesuits, by Indians, black, mulatos, mestizos and adventurers. It had strong participation of cattle dealers who left of Maranhão and Bay, neighboring states, in search of grass for the flock. In that mission, they occupied that one part of the Brazilian territory, creating what the inhabitants of Piauí call popularly like “civilization of the leather�.

In most of the State the semi-arid climate predominates, with rainy periods (of December to April) and of drought (the other months). The vegetation is of caatinga, which, together with the climate, favors a subsistence agriculture, the extensive young of cattle in great large estates and the extraction of different species from palm as carnaúba and babaçu is the most important resources.

Piauí counts on the advantage to have the stabilized, sensible population between the areas rural and urban, and a demographic densidad loss for the levels of the Northeastern region.

The capital, Teresina, are the unique one enters the capitals of nordestinos states not located to border of the sea, by to have produced the colonization of the State of form different from the other administrative units that compose the Northeastern region: in Piauí the occupation took place from the interior towards the coast, characteristic in the action of the bandeirantes.

It was the first planned city of Brazil, in 1852, designed by a construction foreman, that idealizó in the form of a chessboard. In the mouths of the rivers Paranaíba and Poti, one mainly knows like the green city, because all reconciled streets and have trees, handles.

These two rivers provide to the city fluvial beaches, very frequented at the time of drought, period that goes of May to November, when the waters diminish and form lagoons surrounded by sand banks. The city offers in addition a beautiful sun putting.

• Church of São Benedito, constructed in 1886, with wood doors carved.
• Theater 4 of Setembro, inaugurated in 1893, neoclassic style.
• Church of Nossa Senhora de Lourdes (1961), decorated with sculptures of the teachers Dezinho and Expedito, the main santeros of Piauí.
• Gardens of the Palace of Karnak, soothe of the government of the State, realized by Robert Deceives Marx, considered the greater Brazilian landscaper

• Delta of the Paranaíba river, river that separates the states of Piauí and Maranhão, the Paranaíba extends by almost 1,500 km. and, before ending at the Atlantic, it in the open sea forms the unique delta of America and one of the three majors of the world. As if they were the fingers of a been openhanded, the river is divided in five channels and forms more than 70 islands and one infinity of lagoons, ecological labyrinths of igarapés (narrow natural channels between the islands) and refuges. They complement the beauty of the delta of the Paranaíba river flocks of herons, toucans, jacarés of papo amarelo, wild macacos prego, horses, mico leão, vixens and deer. All this rich fauna can be observed in trips in small river crafts, that make trips by the delta. One of the majors islands is the one of the Caju, nails ecological where a rare combination of ecosystems serves from animal refuge in extinction and migratory birds. Besides a vegetation ebullient, filled with cajueiros and forests of manguezales, the island has 25 km. of half-wild beaches, fresh and crystalline water igarapés, dunes and lagoons formed in rains.
• Park National of Sete Cidades, where are prehistoric paintings in rocky caverns and formation that dates, like minimum, of 400 million years back.

National park Mountain range of the Capivara was created to protect the area in which is the most important prehistoric patrimony of Brazil. One is an archaeological park with a wealth of rest that have been conserved during millenia due to the existence of an ecological balance. The balance between the natural resources is also the conditioner in the conservation of the cultural resources and has been what it has oriented the demarcation, the management and the use I publish of the park. It has 129,140 you have. and its perimeter is of 214 km. By the importance of his archaeological deposits, it was registered by UNESCO in the list of World-wide the Cultural Patrimony, in 1991. Their formation geologic is monuments of an original and different beauty. The injured landscape generates a series diversified of biotypes, with abundance of the ecosystems that are characterized by a great biological diversity. The specificities, natural beauty and cultural patrimony make of the National Park a highly attractive region for the ecological and cultural tourism.