Cortiço, or gueto, is a common Portuguese term used in Brazil and Portugal for an area of concentrated, high density urban housing where people live with poor sanitation and hygiene conditions. Cortiço houses are typically divided into small rooms that are rented. Cortiços exist in large cities such as São Paulo, Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, and Recife. They originated in São Paulo, Brazil, during the late 1700s, and continue to exist in contemporary times in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Less common today, most cortiços are old buildings in the central, older parts of the cities.
