Machine translation of the Portuguese Wikipedia article (November 2026 version).
São José de Ribamar is the third most populous municipality in the Brazilian state of Maranhão. Its population is 244,579 inhabitants according to the 2022 IBGE census. It belongs to the Metropolitan Region of São Luís. It is one of the four municipalities that make up the island of Upaon-Açu. Located at the far east of the island, facing the Bay of São José, it is about 32 kilometers from the center of the state capital.
The name of the city arose from a legend in which Saint Joseph came across the waters through a Portuguese captain, who was saved from a shipwreck thanks to his faith in Saint Joseph, and the Damasceno tribe of indigenous people contributed to the naming as São José de Ari-bamar; over time the name was changed to São José de Ribamar, which the Catholic people affectionately recognized as the patron saint of Maranhão. In the city of Ribamar is one of the most important sanctuaries of the North-Northeast.
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