Brava (Portuguese for "wild" or "brave") is an island in Cape Verde, and is part of the Sotavento group, in the central Atlantic Ocean.

At 62.5 km2 (24.1 sq mi),[1] it is the smallest inhabited island of the Cape Verde archipelago, but at the same time the greenest.

[2]: 73  There is no evidence of human presence on the Cape Verde islands before the arrival of the Portuguese.

[2]: 83–84  Frequent pirate attacks forced the population towards the interior of the island, where the town Nova Sintra was founded around 1700.

They used the harbours of Brava (Fajã de Água and Furna) to stock up on supplies and drinking water.

This municipality consists of two freguesias (civil parishes): São João Baptista and Nossa Senhora do Monte.

Since 2012, the Movement for Democracy (MpD) is the ruling party of the municipality, and its president is Orlando da Luz Vieira Balla.

The island's two parishes São João Baptista and Nossa Senhora do Monte are subdivided into 16 population zones for statistical purposes:[9] São João Baptista Nossa Senhora do Monte In the 1830s, the population was estimated at 8,000.