Crato, Ceará

Crato is a city of 110,000 inhabitants on the banks of the river Granjeiro in the south of the state of Ceará, in the northeast of Brazil. It was founded 21 June 1764 by the Capuchin friar Carlos Maria de Ferrara. Originally a small village whose population were principally native Kariris, it gained official status as a city 17 October 1817.

The Brazilian city of Crato was named in honor of Crato, a Portuguese town founded in the a 13th century.

Crato is about 550 km from Fortaleza, capital of Ceará. The municipality has a surface area of approximately 1,117 km². It is at an altitude of 426m, . Its population of 110,000 makes it the sixth largest municipality in Ceará. The economy is a mix of commerce and agriculture; as of 2004, a small industrial park is expanding. The region is rich in minerals, especially gypsum and marble.

Crato is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Crato. It has a full range of schools, up to and including a university.

The outskirts of the city are rich in tropical vegetation; the climate is generally good, with somewhat more rain than is typical of the region.