It is known for its heritage of colonial architecture and art in historical cities such as Ouro Preto and Diamantina, São João del-Rei, Mariana, Tiradentes, Congonhas, Sabará and Serro.

The people of Minas Gerais also have a peculiar culture, marked by traditional religious festivals and typical countryside cuisine, in addition to national importance in contemporary artistic productions and also in the sports scene.

The latter corresponded to the areas of sertão which were farther and hard to access (with an economy based on farming and agriculture) from the mining spots, whose economic space was urban in origin.

Its name, in fact, comes from the large quantity and variety of mines present, which began to be explored since the 17th century and to this day drive an important fraction of the state's economy.

[7] The region of Minas Gerais was inhabited by indigenous peoples as long as 11,400 to 12,000 years ago, based on the estimated age of the Luzia woman, the name of the oldest human fossil found in the Americas.

[8][9][10] Based on the analysis of Luzia and her people's cranial morphology, it was theorized that they had Australoid features, having belonged to a population that arrived in the Americas before the ancestors of Amerindians.

[14] In the region of the municipalities of Januária, Montalvânia, Itacarambi and Juvenília, in northern Minas Gerais, archaeological excavations have led to estimates that the initial settlement occurred at Luzia's time.

[23] In the 17th century, the colonization of northern Minas Gerais began, with the settlement of cattle herders, due to the expansion of livestock farming in the northeastern Sertão, and of bandeirantes, in search of precious stones and indigenous people to enslave.

Two years later, Antônio Dias de Oliveira discovered gold at the foot of the Itacolomi Peak and founded his settlement there, the embryo of Vila Rica (currently Ouro Preto).

[23] In 1697, the Portuguese used enslaved African labor to start building the Estrada Real, the "royal road," that would connect the ports of cities of Rio de Janeiro and Paraty to the mineral-rich regions of Vila Rica, Serro, and, at the northernmost point, Diamantina.

The São Paulo settlers were defeated and many of them had to abandon the gold deposits in Minas Gerais, having to look for the metal in what is now the Central-West region of Brazil, finding it years later in Goiás and Mato Grosso.

The intense mix of people associated with wealth from gold and urban life led to the formation of a new, culturally diverse society, with several musicians, artists, sculptors and artisans.

[25] Aleijadinho's sculptural and architectural work, as exhibited in the Twelve Prophets and The Church of Saint Francis of Assisi in Ouro Preto, are prime examples of this period.

Printed copies of European music, as well as accomplished musicians, made the journey to the area, and soon a local school of composition and performance was born and achieved considerable sophistication.

The most famous of them, Joaquim José da Silva Xavier (known as Tiradentes), was hanged by order of Queen Maria I of Portugal, becoming a local hero and a national martyr of Brazil.

The Minas Gerais flag—a red triangle on a white background, along with the Latin motto "Libertas quæ sera tamen", "freedom albeit late"—is based on the design for the national flag proposed by the "Inconfidentes", as the rebels became known.

Subsequently, extensive research efforts were initiated by the National Department of Mineral Production (DNPM), which appointed paleontologist Llewellyn Ivor Price to work in the region.

The Native American population of Minas Gerais was estimated to be at 97,000 in 1500, by the time the Portuguese arrived in Brazil in 1500 (John Hemming in "Red Gold: The Conquest of the Brazilian Indians").

[61] The western part, the "Triângulo Mineiro", is less densely populated than the rest of the state, and it is now a focus of biotechnology investment, particularly on the cities of Uberlândia, Uberaba, Patos de Minas and Araguari, which includes leading research on cattle, soy and corn culture.

Among the steel companies in Minas Gerais are Usiminas, ArcelorMittal Aços Longos (formerly Belgo Mineira), Açominas (belonging to Gerdau), Vallourec & Mannesmann and Aperam South America.

[91][92] There are also large companies installed the automotive industry, as manufacturers FIAT in Betim, IVECO in Sete Lagoas, Mercedes-Benz and suppliers of auto-parts, as STOLA and USIPARTS.

[104] Tourism is also an important activity for the state: historical cities like Ouro Preto, Mariana, Sabará, Congonhas, Diamantina, Tiradentes, and São João del-Rei, are major attractions for visitors interested in their colonial architecture.

One of the most important tourist circuits in Minas Gerais is the Estrada Real, which passes through the old roads used to transport gold from the mines, connecting the central region of the state with the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Parati.

In the central region of the state, in addition to the historic cities and the capital, there are national parks such as Serra do Cipó, as well as the Inhotim Museum, which has one of the largest collections of contemporary art in the country.

Recently, in 2022, a project was created to grant BR-381 to private initiative, with the intention of doubling 215 km between Belo Horizonte, Ipatinga and Novo Oriente de Minas.

The "education" factor of Minas Gerais' HDI reached the mark of 0.762 in 2021 — the seventh highest in the country — while the illiteracy rate of people aged 15 and over was 4.8% in 2022, the eleventh best national percentage, but the worst in the Brazilian Southeast.

In the state, tennis players Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares were born, who were respectively the nº1 and nº2 of the world in doubles;[137][138] Ronaldo da Costa, former holder of the marathon world record;[139] Olympic medalists such as Maicon de Andrade en taekwondo,[140] Marcus Mattioli in swimming,[141] Moysés Blás and Cláudia Pastor in basketball;[142][143] Adenízia da Silva, Ana Carolina da Silva, Ana Flávia Sanglard, Ana Paula Henkel, Anderson Rodrigues, Camila Brait, Érika Coimbra, Fabiana Claudino, Gabriela Guimarães, Giovane Gavio, Hilma, Marcia Fu, Xandó, Maurício Souza, Lucarelli, Sassá, Sheilla Castro, Talmo and Walewska in volleyball;[144] so as World Championship medalists like André Cordeiro, Henrique Barbosa, Larissa Oliveira, Nicolas Oliveira, Rodrigo Castro and Teófilo Ferreira in swimming.

The Spiritist doctrine is also professed by a significant portion of the population, partly due to the influence of Chico Xavier, the main spiritual icon of Brazil, who lived in Minas Gerais all his life.

[149] It is the dialect spoken in the capital, Belo Horizonte, and the historical cities (Ouro Preto, Mariana, Sabará, Diamantina, Tiradentes, São João del-Rei etc.).

Traditional cooking is done using coal- or wood-fired ovens and cast iron pans, making for a particularly tasty flavor; some restaurant chains have adopted these techniques and made this type of food popular in other parts of the country.