Provinces of Argentina became provinces in 1951. Misiones did so in 1953, and Formosa, Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and Santa Cruz, in 1955. The last national territory, Tierra del Fuego, became the Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province in 1990. Argentina is a federation of twenty-three provinces and one autonomous city, Buenos Aires. Provinces are divided for administration purposes into departments and municipalities, except for Buenos Aires Province, which is divided into partidos and "localidades". Buenos Aires City itself is divided into communes ("comuna") and non-official neighbourhoods ("barrios"). Provinces hold all the power that they chose not to delegate
Catamarca Province low humidity and high solar radiation. Before the arrival of the Spanish conquest, most of today's Catamarca was inhabited by the Diaguitas indigenous people, including the fierce Calchaquí tribe. In 1558 Juan Pérez de Zurita founded "San Juan de la Ribera de Londres", but since it was constantly under attack by indigenous people its population remained small; it was re-founded several times at new sites with new names. The sixth foundation was by Fernando de Mendoza Mate de Luna on July 5, 1683, with the name "San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca". When the Viceroyalty of the Río de la