spreading of modern ideas in literature in Brazil. Other entities of the time included the Ceara Institute and Ceara's Academy of Letters established in 1887 and 1894 respectively.
In the twentieth century, Fortaleza underwent significant urban changes, with improvements and the rural exodus to the city, with growth mostly happening towards the end of the decade of 1910, which helped promote the city to the title of seventh best city in population in Brazil. In 1922, Fortaleza reached its first hundred thousand inhabitants with the annexation of the cities of Messejana and Parangaba, now important districts of the city.
In 1954, the first university in the city was created, the UFC. Between 1950 and 1960, the city achieved an economic expansion in excess of 100Percent and outlying neighborhoods began to grow.
During the years of 1964–1985 several changes took place in Fortaleza which made the city a central region for industries. Governor Virgilio Tavora (1963–1966) initiated the implantation of Industrial District of Fortaleza (DIF I). One decade later, the city already had about a million inhabitants, Metropolitan areas were created Brazil (1973), making the city one of them. In 1983 DIF I started to integrate the territory of the new city of Maracanaú, which, just some years ago, was made again part of the Greater Fortaleza (the city's Metropolitan area). In the 1980s, Fortaleza exceeded Recife in population terms, becoming the second most populous city in Northeastern Brazil, with 1,308,919 inhabitants.
During the political opening after the military regime, the people elected the city's first woman mayor, Maria Luiza Fontenele, and had the first city hall commanded by a left-wing party. At the end of the century, the administration of the city hall and the city underwent diverse structural changes with the opening of several avenues, hospitals, cultural spaces and it became one of the main tourist destinations in the Northeast
