Guaíra (Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: [ɡwaˈiɾɐ]) is a municipality in the state of Paraná in the Southern Region of Brazil.

The foundation of Guaíra is closely linked to Companhia Matte Larangeira, also responsible for the founding of the city of Porto Murtinho.

The Missions took place in the territories now geographically demarcated in the States of Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná and Paraguay.

In 1620, the territory of Guaíra was virtually in the hands of the Portuguese, as the São Paulo bandeirantes periodically ravaged the region, destroying the Spanish people and enslaving the catechized Indians of the Jesuit reductions.

The search for wealth, or for slave labor, led the Bandeirantes Paulistas to enter this territory, decimating the Spanish groups and enslaving the Indians.

In 1910, the main focus of exploration of erva mate was transferred to the Paraná River, reducing its strategic importance for the company, with its monopoly being broken in 1916.