Palmas (, Palm trees; Akwẽ-Xerénte: Akwẽ krikahâzawre wam hã ) is the capital and largest city of the state of Tocantins, Brazil. According to IBGE estimates from 2020, the city had 306,296 inhabitants. Palmas is located at the state's geographic centre at an average altitude of 230 m (755 ft). The city is located between the Serra do Lajeado hills on the east and the Tocantins River on the west. Palmas has a metropolitan area with 471,639 inhabitants. Palmas was founded in 1990 and developed from the ground up in a former agricultural area as the capital of the new state of Tocantins, formed under the 1988 constitution. It was intended to develop a relatively undeveloped area of the nation to provide better jobs for people. The city has a well-designed road system, and its urban zoning is modeled on that of Brasília, the national capital. A symmetrical park lies at the city centre, and a large central avenue similar to Brasília's extends north to south. The city is home to the Federal University of Tocantins. In 2002, the was completed on the Tocantins River, creating a large reservoir and giving the city new beaches. The project also included construction of a huge bridge: the , long, connects Palmas with the major highway BR-153 and the district of Luzimangues in Porto Nacional. The Palmas Airport connects Palmas with many Brazilian cities. History The area where Palmas was built was originally used for agriculture. Before 1990, the only village in the location was Vila Canela (near the river Tocantins, and near the Graciosa beach). The village and the beach were often flooded as the new reservoir lake was developed. The flat area of Palmas is between the river and the Serra do Lajeado hills in the east, and the vegetation is the typical cerrado. In 1989 Miracema was the temporary capital of the state. The new capital was initially designed by the architects Luiz Fernando Cruvinel Teixeira and Walfredo de Oliveira Filho. From 20 May 1989, some of the roads and baracas were built. The government had decided to develop the capital on the east side of the river, in order to stimulate development on the east side of the state. This is also the geodesic center of Brazil. Before the dam was constructed and the reservoir developed, the Tocantins River made curves, forming what would look like the letter S