About Argentina

About Argentina and Republic Overview - Argentina Travel Guide

Buenos Aires Streets in Christmas
Buenos Aires Streets in Christmas- photo by Rick Price

Argentine Republic Overview

Argentina is a country that’s filled with surprises. Humans have been enjoying this enchanting land between the Andes Mountains and southern Atlantic Ocean for thousands of years. Evidence of human activity has been documented as early as 11,000 BC in Patagonia, but research has revealed that people have been living in the area for over 40,000 years, The Spanish claimed that they discovered Argentina in the 16th century, in fact they named the land Tierra Argentina or “Land of Silver,” because of the Rio da Plata or “River of Silver,” which was discovered by Spanish and Portuguese explorers around 1516. Buenos Aires was actually settled in 1580 and the new residents started a cattle industry that thrived until the British invaded the country in the 19th century. The Argentinaans form a government after the French invaded in 1808 and in 1816 independence was declared.

Argentina is the second largest country in South America. It has a land mass of 1,056,636 sq. miles and a population of 41 million people. Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city with a population of 13.4 million, followed by Cordoba with 1.5 million and Rosario with 1.3 million people. Mendoza is next with around 1 million people and Mar del Plata has about 690,000 residents. Argentina uses the peso as their monetary unit. The country is divided into 23 provinces and one autonomous city. Argentina has 2,899 miles of coastline, which varies from sand dunes to cliffs.

About Argentina Today

Argentina is considered a country of immigrants. Most of the residents are European descendants, although about 8% of the population is Mestizo, which is a mixture of European and Amerindian blood lines. The Amerindians were the original inhabitants of Argentina. About 2% of the current population is considered full Amerindians. Argentina’s population is considered urbanized. Over 38% of the country’s population lives in the Province of Buenos Aires and another 61% live in the Pampas region. Argentina has an abundant supply of natural resources and has a highly diversified industrial and agricultural base. It is the 38th wealthiest nation in the world even though the country suffers from excessive regulations, record debt and a government that is considered corrupt and unethical at times. Argentina is trying to recovery from a crumbling economy and is showing signs of progress, even in these difficult economic times.