São Luís

São Luís is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Maranhão. It is located on Ilha de São Luís (Saint Louis' Island), in the Baía de São Marcos (Saint Mark's Bay), an extension of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the estuary of Pindaré, Mearim, Itapecuru, and other rivers. São Luís has the second-largest maritime extension within Brazilian states. Its maritime extension is 640 km (397 miles). Created originally as Saint-Louis-de-Maragnan, São Luís is the only Brazilian state capital founded by France (France Équinoxiale) and it is one of the three Brazilian state capitals located on islands (the others are Vitória and Florianópolis).