Map - Várzea Alegre (Várzea Alegre)

Várzea Alegre is a municipality in the state of Ceará in the Northeast region of Brazil. Its area is 835.706 km2, including the Calabaça (pumpkin), Canindezinho, Ibicatu, Naraniú and Lagoa Verde (green lagoon) districts.

There is little information on the early settlement of Várzea Alegre. Pioneer explorers of the region saw the valley on the dangerous walk towards Cariri and named it Várzea Alegre after the floodplain or lowland where the city is located. It is one of the few cities in Ceará that has never changed its name. The municipality was created by Provincial Law No. 1.329, on October 10, 1870.

Várzea Alegre was separated from Lavras da Mangabeira, previously part of Cedro, in November 1863. The city's assets consisted of a patch of land, donated by Major Joaquim Alves Bezerra, his wife and others, on October 19. The local parish was established on November 30, 1863. According to tradition, the church of São Raimundo Nonato was built by the sons of Raimundo Bezerra, known as "Father Raymond".

Várzea Alegre is known as the "Land of Contrasts". Those contrasts have inspired songs like Luiz Gonzaga's "Contrastes de Várzea Alegre", with lyrics by the composer José Clementino.