ABSTRACT
This chapter sheds light on the historical development of migration in and out of Brazil, focusing on the post-war period. To do so, we rely on the contributions of Brazilian sociological debates on this theme. The chapter is divided into two general sections, presenting two distinct periods, with each phase being approached in a different manner by Brazilian sociologists. The first one covers the period from 1940 to 1980, through the debate of two seminal Brazilian sociologists Gilberto Freyre and Florestan Fernandes. The second section reflects on the changes on migration in Brazil by focusing on a period, which is also divided into two parts, the years 1980–2008 and 2010-onwards. These periods enter into the sociological debate in different ways. From 1980 to 2008 Brazil faced an increase in emigration, and the sociological debate was mainly conducted by Brazilian researchers living abroad, who experienced the formation of Brazilian communities overseas. Sociologists at that time sought to understand the motivations that triggered their decision to emigrate and the social relations created by Brazilian migrants abroad. Finally, the chapter addresses the last two decades, when researchers study the increase of Latin American flows to Brazil, particularly the arrival and settlement of Haitians and Venezuelans.
