Les nombres comme monuments : le rôle de Teixeira de Freitas dans le recensement de 1920 au Minas Gerais et dans la commémoration du centenaire de l’indépendance du Brésil

Abstract

This text examines the 1920 census and its historical counterpart, the commemoration of the centennial of Brazil's independence, as envisioned and, to a large extent, conducted by the statistician Mário Augusto Teixeira de Freitas. He was a protagonist in the design and implementation of statistical policies in Brazil and played a decisive role in the creation of the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística [Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics] or IBGE. His career was marked by his experience in the state of Minas Gerais, where he coordinated the census and actively participated in the official initiatives of the Independence celebrations. The analysis of this specific experience will be presented in its technical, political, and symbolic dimensions.

Keywords

• 1920 census
• independence centennial of Brazil
• statistical mapping
• Brazil
• Minas Gerais
• 20th century