Gilberto Gil's Childhood and Adolescence

In August 1943, Gilberto Gil's younger sister, Gildina Passos Gil Moreira, was born in Ituaçu, a city in inland Bahia.

José Gil Moreira studied medicine at the Federal University of Bahia and Claudina Passos completed primary school teacher training, known as the Curso Normal. This would qualify her to teach in Brazil's old primary school system, as well as in a few other educational sectors. 

José Gil was highly interested in politics. It's no surprise that his son, Gilberto, acted in the field throughout his life.

When Gilberto ran for office as a City Councilman in Salvador, in 1988, his father was one of his greatest supporters.

Gil’s father was finding it difficult to get established as a doctor, so the family moved from the Salvador neighborhood of Tororó to Ituaçu, a city 280 miles (450 kilometers) away. Gilberto, their eldest child, had spent less than one month of his life in the Bahian capital.

Gilberto Gil was nine years old when he and his family returned to the Bahian capital. There, he and his sister, Gildina, were enrolled at the Colégio Nossa Senhora da Vitória school, and at the Regina Accordion Academy in the same year.

Gilberto and his sister Gildina spent their teenage years in the capital of Bahia, Salvador.