MIGRATORY DYNAMICS OF THE AVERAGE CITY: AN ANALYSIS OF ANGRA DOS REIS, RJ

Abstract

In this article, we investigate spatial mobility in Angra dos Reis, a medium-sized city located in the south of the State of Rio de Janeiro, to understand the recent urban dynamics of the city and its insertion in the urban network. More specifically, we seek to determine the importance and the profile of the migratory flows that are affecting the city, as well as possible changes in the period 1980-2010. Globally, Angra dos Reis has a significant migration potential, resulting of a certain economic dynamism, which contributed strongly to its demographic growth. The article also shows that the city has a limited capacity of population retention, and that it is mainly the middle e upper classes that leave the city. Thus, Angra dos Reis is city of workers, expelling its elites to other cities. This constitutes a characteristic feature of the city and, potentially, of medium-sized cities in general