section_path: Etymology
section_name: Etymology
paragraph_text: Etymology
  
  Belém is the Portuguese name for Bethlehem, and has its origin in Hebrew which means "the house of bread". Initially the city was called "St. Mary of Bethlehem of Pará" (Portuguese: Santa Maria de Belém do Pará) or "Our Lady of Bethlehem of Greater Pará" (Portuguese: Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão Pará), eventually shortened to Belém do Pará (name given by Philip III of Spain), in reference to Christmas; the day when captain Francisco Caldeira Castelo Branco left from the city of São Luís in 1615 to conquer the lands of Pará.