CUYABA, or CUTABA  , capital of the inland state of Matto Grosso, Brazil, about 972 M . N.W. of Rio de Janeiro, on the Cuyaba river near its discharge into the Sao Lourenco, the principal Brazilian tributary of the Paraguay . Pop . (1890) 14,507; of the municipality, 17,815 . The surrounding country is thickly populated . Cuyaba has uninterrupted steamer communication with Montevideo, about 2500 M. distant, but has no land communication with the national capital, except by telegraph, The climate is hot and malaria is prevalent . Cuyabawas founded in 1719 by Paalista gold hunters, and its gold-washings, no* apparently exhausted, yielded rich results in the 18th century . It is the see of a bishopric and headquarters of an important military district, having an arsenal and military barracks .