Rio Grande do Sul

Rio Grande do Sul (pron. IPA: [ʁiu 'gɾɐ̃.de do sul] [1]; English: "South Great River") is the southernmost state of Brazil, and one of the states with the highest standard of living. Rio Grande do Sul is bordered on the north by the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Uruguay, and on the west by Argentina. The northern part of the state lies on the southern slopes of the elevated plateau extending southward from São Paulo across the states of Paraná and Santa Catarina, and is much broken by low mountain ranges whose general direction across the trend of the slope gives them the appearance of escarpments.