NATAL, a town of Brazil, capital of the province of Rio-Grande-do-Norte, on the River Grande, about 4 miles from its mouth, and 170 miles N. by W. of Pernambuco. The houses are for the most part built only of earth, and the streets are narrow, crooked, and unpaved. The harbour, which might be made one of the best in Brazil, is at present so filled with mud as to be inaccessible to large vessels. The trade is considerable. Pop. (1851) 12,000.