Fortaleza, city in northeastern Brazil, capital of Ceará State, a seaport on the Atlantic Ocean, near the mouth of the Ceará River. The Pajeú, a branch of the Ceará, runs through the city, dividing it into two sections. It is one of Brazil's chief seaports and has additional harbor facilities at nearby Mucuripe Point. The chief exports are coffee, cotton, carnauba wax, beans, rice, sugar, fruits, rubber, hides, skins, and rum. Fortaleza was founded in 1611. It became the capital of Ceará State in 1810 and was incorporated as a city in 1823. Population (1996 estimate) 1,965,513.
