city of Salvador, often as street food, and is also found in most parts of Nigeria, Ghana and the Republic of Benin. Sports Capoeira Capoeira is a martial art developed initially by African slaves who came predominantly from Angola or Mozambique to Brazil, starting in the colonial period. Appeared in Quilombo dos Palmares, located in the Captaincy of Pernambuco. Documents, legends and literature of Brazil record this practice, especially in the port of Salvador, a city in which black Africans were discriminated against by colonial society and seen as villains. Despite being reprimanded, Africans continued to practice this martial art, on the pretext that it was just a dance. Until the present, Capoeira confuses dance and fight, and is an important part of the culture of Brazil. It is marked by deft, tricky movements often played on the ground or completely inverted. It also has a strong acrobatic component in some versions and is always played with music. Recently, the sport has been popularized by Capoeira performed in various computer games and movies, and Capoeira music has been featured in modern pop music (see Capoeira in popular culture). Music The music of Brazil is a mixture of Portuguese, Amerindian, and African music, making a wide variety of styles. Brazil is well known for the rhythmic liveliness of its music as in its Samba dance music. Notable people Many black Brazilians have been prominent in Brazilian society, particularly in the arts, music and sports. Many important figures of Brazilian literature have been people of African-descendant, such as Machado de Assis, widely regarded as the greatest writer of Brazilian literature. Some of these individuals include João da Cruz e Souza, symbolist poet, João do Rio, chronicler, Maria Firmina dos Reis, abolitionist and author, José do Patrocínio, journalist, among others. In popular music, the talents of black Brazilians have found fertile ground for their development. Masters of samba, Pixinguinha, Cartola, Lupicínio Rodrigues, Geraldo Pereira, Wilson Moreira, and of MPB, Milton Nascimento, Jorge Ben Jor, Gilberto Gil, have built the Brazilian musical identity. Another field where black Brazilians have excelled is football: Pelé, Garrincha, right-forward Leônidas da Silva, nicknamed "Black Diamond", are well known historic names of Brazilian football; Ronaldinho, Romário, Dida, Fernandinho, Robinho and many others continue this tradition. Important athletes in other sports include NBA players, Nenê and Leandro Barbosa, nicknamed "The Brazilian Blur", referring to his speed. João Carlos de Oliveira