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Argentine Republic

República Argentina  (Spanish)
Sol de Mayo[1]
(Sun of May)

Sol de Mayo
Mainland Argentina shown in dark green, with territorial claims shown in light green
and largest city
Buenos Aires
34°36′S 58°23′W﻿ / ﻿34.600°S 58.383°W﻿ / -34.600; -58.383
Official languagesSpanish[a]
Ethnic groups
GovernmentFederal presidential constitutional republic
• President
Mauricio Macri[8]
Gabriella Michetti
Ricardo Lorenzetti
Chamber of Deputies
from Spain
25 May 1810
• Declared
9 July 1816
1 May 1853
29 April 1857
• Total
2,780,400 km2 (1,073,500 sq mi) (8th)
• Water (%)
• 2014 estimate
• 2010 census
40,117,096 (32nd)
• Density
14.4/km2 (37.3/sq mi) (212th)
GDP (PPP)2014 estimate
• Total
$927.382 billion[10] (25th)
• Per capita
$22,101[10] (55th)
GDP (nominal)2014 estimate
• Total
$536.155 billion[10] (24th)
• Per capita
$12,778[10] (60th)
Gini (2011)Positive decrease 43.6[11]
HDI (2013)Increase 0.808[12]
very high · 49th
CurrencyPeso ($) (ARS)
Time zoneUTC−3 (ART)
Date (CE)
Driving sideright[b]
Calling code+54
ISO 3166 codeAR
  1. ^ De facto at all government levels. In addition, some provinces have official de jure languages:
     · Guaraní in Corrientes Province.[13]
     · Kom, Moqoit and Wichi, in Chaco Province.[14]
  2. ^ Trains ride on left.

Argentina (officially the Argentine Republic) is a country in South America. Argentina is the second-largest country in South America and the eighth-largest country in the world.

Spanish is the most spoken language, and the official language, but many other languages are spoken. There are minorities speaking Italian, German, English, Quechua and even Welsh in Patagonia.

In eastern Argentina is Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, it is also one of the largest cities in the world. In order by number of people, the largest cities in Argentina are Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Rosario, Mendoza, La Plata, Tucumán, Mar del Plata, Salta, Santa Fe, and Bahía Blanca.

Argentina is between the Andes mountain range in the west and the southern Atlantic Ocean in the east and south. It is bordered by Paraguay and Bolivia in the north, Brazil and Uruguay in the northeast, and Chile in the west and south. It also claims the Falkland Islands (Spanish: Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. Most citizens of the Argentine Republic are descendants of immigrants from Europe. They are united by citizenship and not necessarily by ethnicity. Most Argentinians embrace both their ethnic origins and Argentinian nationality.

History[change | change source]

The name Argentina comes from the Latin argentum (silver) as the Spanish conquistadors believed the area had silver. In the Americas (South and North), Canada, US, Brazil and Argentina are the largest countries (in that order).

The oldest signs of people in Argentina are in the Patagonia (Piedra Museo, Santa Cruz), and are more than 13,000 years old. In 1480 the Inca Empire conquered northwestern Argentina, making it part of the empire. In the northeastern area, the Guaraní developed a culture based on yuca and sweet potato however typical dishes all around Argentina are pasta, red wines (Italian influence) and beef.

Other languages spoken are Italian, English and German. Lunfardo is Argentinean slang and is a mix of Spanish and Italian. Argentinians are said to speak Spanish with an Italian accent.

Argentina declared independent from Spain in 1816, and achieved it in a War led by José de San Martín in 1818. Many immigrants from Europe came to the country. By the 1920s it was the 7th wealthiest country in the world, but it began a decline after this. In the 1940s, following the "infamous decade" where the country's politics were not stable, Juan Peron came to power. Peron was one of the most important people in the country's history and many politicians today call themselves Peronist. Peron was forced out of power in 1955. After spending years in exile he returned to power in the 1970s.

In 1976, the country was falling into chaos, and the military took power. This was not the first time the military had done this. Leading the new government was Jorge Rafael Videla. Videla was one of history's most brutal dictators. Thousands of people disappeared or were killed during his time as president. Videla retired in 1980.

One of his successors was another general turned dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri. By the time Galtieri was in office in 1981 the dictatorship became unpopular. To stir up support, Galtieri ordered an invasion of the Falkland Islands, starting the Falklands War. Argentina lost the war, and soon the country fell into chaos again. Galtieri was removed from power and eventually democracy was restored. Galtieri and Videla would be charged with "crimes against humanity" because of the mass murder and other crimes that they ordered as president.

In the early 21st century Argentina is one of the most important countries in Latin America, though it still has many problems. It has a large economy and is influential in the "southern cone" of South America and a member of the G20 developing nations.

Politics[change | change source]

Argentina is a federal republic. The people of Argentina vote for a President to rule them and Senators and Deputies to speak for them and make laws for them. The President is Mauricio Macri since December 2015.

Administrative divisions[change | change source]

Argentina is divided into 23 provinces (provincias; singular: provincia), and 1 city (commonly known as capital federal):

  1. Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires*
  2. Buenos Aires (Province)
  3. Catamarca
  4. Chaco
  5. Chubut
  6. Córdoba
  7. Corrientes
  8. Entre Ríos
  9. Formosa
  10. Jujuy
  11. La Pampa
  12. La Rioja
  1. Mendoza
  2. Misiones
  3. Neuquén
  4. Río Negro
  5. Salta
  6. San Juan
  7. San Luis
  8. Santa Cruz
  9. Santa Fe
  10. Santiago del Estero
  11. Tierra del Fuego
  12. Tucumán

Geography[change | change source]

Map of Argentina
Map of Argentina

Argentina is almost 3,700 km long from north to south, and 1,400 km from east to west (maximum values). It can be divided into three parts: the Pampas in the central part of the country, Patagonia in the southern part down to Tierra del Fuego; and the Andes mountain range along the western border with Chile, with the highest point in the province of Mendoza. Cerro Aconcagua, at 6,960 metres (22,834 ft), is the Americas' highest mountain.

The most important rivers include the River Plate, Paraguay, Bermejo, Colorado, Uruguay and the largest river, the Paraná. River Plate was incorrectly translated though, and should have been translated to English as River of (the) Silver. River Plate is also a famous Buenos Aires soccer team.

See List of cities in Argentina for the many places people live in Argentina.

Other information[change | change source]

The majority of the Argentineans are descendants of Europeans mainly from Spain, Italy, Germany, Ireland, France, other Europeans countries and Mestizo representing more than 90% of the total population of the country.[15]

Football or soccer is the most popular sport, although the national sport of the country is Pato. Argentina has a number of highly ranked Polo players. Field hockey (for women) rugby and golf are also favorites.

Argentina is a Christian country. Most of Argentina's people (80 percent) are Roman Catholic. Argentina also has the largest population of Jewish community after Israel and US. Middle Eastern immigrants who were Muslims converted to Catholicism, but there are still Muslims as well.

Medicine is socialized and so is education, making Argentina's literacy rate about 98%. State University is free as well.

Related pages[change | change source]

References[change | change source]

  1. Crow 1992, p. 457: "In the meantime, while the crowd assembled in the plaza continued to shout its demands at the cabildo, the sun suddenly broke through the overhanging clouds and clothed the scene in brilliant light. The people looked upward with one accord and took it as a favorable omen for their cause. This was the origin of the ″sun of May″ which has appeared in the center of the Argentine flag and on the Argentine coat of arms ever since."; Kopka 2011, p. 5: "The sun's features are those of Inti, the Incan sun god. The sun commemorates the appearance of the sun through cloudy skies on May 25, 1810, during the first mass demonstration in favor of independence."
  3. "Argentina inicia una nueva etapa en su relación con Japón".
  4. Clarí "La comunidad china en el país se duplicó en los últimos 5 años".
  5. "국가지표체계".
  6. "WebINDEC – Poblaci Censo 2010".
  7. "The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency".
  8. Stahl, Lesley (March 20, 2016). "Argentina's new president on rebuilding his country, and quickly". CBS News. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  9. "Cuadro 1. Población estimada al 1 de julio de cada año calendario por sexo. Total del país. Años 2010–2040" (XLS). Censo Nacional de Población, Hogares y Viviendas 2010 (in Spanish). Buenos Aires: INDEC – Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos. 2010. Archived from the original on 8 June 2014.
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 "Argentina". World Economic Outlook Database, October 2014. International Monetary Fund. 2 November 2014.
  11. "GINI index (World Bank estimate)". World Bank. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  12. "Human Development Report 2014 – Summary" (PDF). New York, NY, USA: United Nations Development Programme. 2014. pp. 15, 16. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 July 2014.
  13. Ley No. 5598 de la Provincia de Corrientes, 22 de octubre de 2004
  14. Ley No. 6604 de la Provincia de Chaco, 28 de julio de 2010, B.O., (9092)
  15. "The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency".

Other websites[change | change source]