Locational dynamics in the territorialization of evangelical churches in the Western Zone of Boa Vista, Roraima

Abstract

Amid the prevalent Evangelical expansion in Boa Vista, Roraima, we scrutinize the locational dynamics – where, how, and why churches specialize and territorialize in the city – of religious institutions belonging to this Christian segment. Spatially, the analysis focuses on the Western Zone, as it is the area experiencing the most significant growth under the intense urbanization process of Roraima’s capital. More specifically, our attention is directed toward three neighborhoods: Caranã, União, and Laura Moreira. The choice to work with these neighborhoods stems from the fact that the first two are considered “older” (dating back to the 1990s), while Laura Moreira emerged in 2005. This dual temporal context provides an opportunity to analyze the territorial composition of churches by addressing, on the one hand, the city’s growth at the urban fringes, and on the other, its consolidation within an already urbanized framework. Regarding methodology, we began with an analysis of the distribution of churches in the selected neighborhoods based on the 2022 Census, which was further refined through field research conducted in 2024. With the data collected – including the churches and their founding years in each neighborhood – we established analytical typologies based on church profiles (Pentecostal, Baptist, etc.) and related to the temporality (emergence, consolidation, and recent years) of the neighborhoods. Our findings demonstrate that locational dynamics, responding to specific territorialities, vary according to the outlined typologies. Notably, large national Evangelical denominations tend to either accompany or precede urbanization itself, while small and/or medium-sized denominations generally proliferate once the neighborhood is already consolidated within the urban landscape.