Title not available in English.

Abstract

The State, the economy and geographical mobility: a retrospective view and perspectives for the end of the century. The eighties marked the discontinuation of the bipolar process of population redistribution which had prevailed in Brazil since 1930, consisting of occupation of frontier areas together with rapid urbanization. The characteristics of the new cycle are still only diffusely perceived at this time, but will depend, more directly than in the past, on the manner in which Brazil is inserted into the World economy. This article attempts to provide a retrospective of the main changes in the pattern of spatial redistribution, analysing the role of the State in such changes, as a starting point for thoughts on future perspectives. One can conclude that the history of spatial redistribution of the Brazilian population left a very favourable legacy in terms of the conditions of the Country's competitivity. The predominance of urban population, the existence of an integrated network of 560 cities and the reduced level of urban and demographic growth are all favourable factors in the scenario of this end of the Centuty.