Jequitinhonha, a river of Brazil, rising in the Serro Frio, about 9 m. W. of the town of Serro, and S. S. W. of the peak of Itambe, in the province of Minas Geraes, and falling into the Atlantic near the town of Belmonte in Bahia, lat. 15° 50' S., Ion. 39° W. It has a course of about 750 m., the first 130 m. being N., and the remainder generally N. E., and the area of its basin is estimated at 19,800 sq. m. Its bed is obstructed by many dangerous rapids and cataracts, and a magnificent series of cascades with an aggregate fall of 300 ft. occurs near the boundary line between Minas Geraes and Bahia; so that the river to that point is only navigable by canoes. Further down it widens, but, being shallow, is only available for small steamers; while the entrance, owing to numerous sand bars, is difficult for even the smallest coasters. The Poassti, however, opening on the left bank, and communicating with the Pardo, virtually forms the main channel of the Jequitinhonha; and the maize, cotton, and other products, sent down in large quantities from Minas Geraes and the lower river, are not taken to Belmonte, but to Cannavieiras, at the mouth of the Pardo, 40 m. N. Of the numerous tributaries of the Jequitinhonha, the principal is the Arassuai, a stream of considerable magnitude from the south.

Diamonds are plentiful in all the streams.