Argentina

Argentina,officially theArgentine Republic,is a country in the southern half ofSouth America. It covers an area of 2,780,085 km(1,073,397 sq mi),making it thesecond-largest country in South AmericaafterBrazil, the fourth-largest country in theAmericas, and theeighth-largest countryin the world. Argentina shares the bulk of theSouthern ConewithChileto the west, and is also bordered byBoliviaandParaguayto the north, Brazil to the northeast,Uruguayand the SouthAtlantic Oceanto the east, and theDrake Passageto the south. Argentina is afederal statesubdivided into twenty-threeprovinces, and oneautonomous city, which is thefederal capitalandlargest cityof the nation,Buenos Aires. The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions, but exist under afederal system. Argentina claims sovereignty over theFalkland Islands,South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, theSouthern Patagonian Ice Field, anda part of Antarctica.
The earliest recorded human presence in modern-day Argentina dates back to thePaleolithicperiod.TheInca Empireexpanded to the northwest of the country in Pre-Columbian times. The country has its roots inSpanish colonizationof the region during the 16th century.Argentina rose as the successor state of theViceroyalty of the Río de la Plata,a Spanishoverseas viceroyaltyfounded in 1776. Thedeclarationon July 9 of 1816 and thefight for independence(1810–1825) was followed by anextended civil warthat lasted until 1880, culminating in the country's reorganization as afederation. The country thereafter enjoyed relative peace and stability, withseveral waves of European immigration, mainlyItaliansandSpaniards, influencing itscultureanddemography.
TheNational Autonomist Partydominated national politics in the period called theConservative Republic, from 1880 until the1916 elections. TheGreat Depressionled to thefirst coup d'état in 1930led byJosé Félix Uriburu, beginning the so-called "Infamous Decade" (1930-1943). After that coup, four more followed in1943,1955,1962, and1966. Following the death of PresidentJuan Perónin 1974, his widow and vice president,Isabel Perón, ascended to the presidency, before being overthrown in the final coupin 1976. The followingmilitary junta, which was supported by theUnited States, persecuted and murdered thousands of political critics, activists, and leftists in theDirty War, a period ofstate terrorismand civil unrest that lasted until the election ofRaúl Alfonsínas president in1983.
Argentina is aregional power, and retains its historic status as amiddle powerin international affairs.Amajor non-NATO allyof the United States,Argentina is adeveloping countrywith the second-highestHDI(human development index) inLatin AmericaafterChile.It maintains thesecond-largest economyin South America, and is a member ofG-15andG20. Argentina is also a founding member of theUnited Nations,World Bank,World Trade Organization,Mercosur,Community of Latin American and Caribbean Statesand theOrganization of Ibero-American States.
The description of the region by the wordArgentinahas been found on aVenetianmap in 1536.
In English, the nameArgentinacomes from theSpanish language; however, the naming itself is not Spanish, butItalian.Argentina(masculineargentino) means in Italian '(made) of silver, silver coloured', derived from the Latinargentumfor silver. In Italian, the adjective or theproper nounis often used in an autonomous way as a substantive and replaces it and it is saidl'Argentina.
The nameArgentinawas probably first given by the Venetian and Genoese navigators, such asGiovanni Caboto. In Spanish and Portuguese, the words for 'silver' are respectivelyplataandprataand '(made) of silver' isplateadoandprateado, althoughargentofor 'silver' andargentadofor 'covered in silver' exist in Spanish.Argentinawas first associated with thesilver mountains legend, widespread among the first European explorers of theLa Plata Basin.
The first written use of the name in Spanish can be traced toLa Argentina,a 1602 poem byMartín del Barco Centeneradescribing the region.Although "Argentina" was already in common usage by the 18th century, the country was formally named "Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata" by theSpanish Empire, and "United Provinces of the Río de la Plata" after independence.
The1826 constitutionincluded the first use of the name "Argentine Republic" in legal documents.The name "Argentine Confederation" was also commonly used and was formalized in theArgentine Constitution of 1853.In 1860 a presidential decree settled the country's name as "Argentine Republic",and that year's constitutional amendment ruled all the names since 1810 as legally valid.
InEnglish, the country was traditionally called "the Argentine", mimicking the typicalSpanishusagela Argentinaand perhaps resulting from a mistaken shortening of the fuller name 'Argentine Republic'. 'The Argentine' fell out of fashion during the mid-to-late 20th century, and now the country is referred to as "Argentina".
The earliest traces of human life in the area now known as Argentina are dated from thePaleolithicperiod, with further traces in theMesolithicandNeolithic.Until the period of European colonization, Argentina was relatively sparsely populated by a wide number of diverse cultures with different social organizations,which can be divided into three main groups.
The first group are basic hunters and food gatherers without the development ofpottery, such as theSelk'namandYaghanin the extreme south. The second group are advanced hunters and food gatherers which include thePuelche,Querandíand Serranos in the centre-east; and theTehuelchein the south—all of them conquered by theMapuchespreading fromChile—and theKomandWichiin the north. The last group are farmers with pottery, such as theCharrúa,MinuaneandGuaraníin the northeast, withslash and burnsemisedentary existence;the advancedDiaguitasedentarytrading culturein the northwest, which was conquered by theInca Empirearound 1480; theToconotéandHênîa and Kâmîarein the country's centre, and theHuarpein the centre-west, a culture that raisedllamacattle and was strongly influenced by the Incas.
Europeans first arrived in the region with the 1502 voyage ofAmerigo Vespucci. The Spanish navigatorsJuan Díaz de SolísandSebastian Cabotvisited the territory that is now Argentina in 1516 and 1526, respectively.In 1536Pedro de Mendozafounded the small settlement ofBuenos Aires, which was abandoned in 1541.
Further colonization efforts came fromParaguay—establishing theGovernorate of the Río de la Plata—Peruand Chile.Francisco de AguirrefoundedSantiago del Esteroin 1553.Londreswas founded in 1558;Mendoza, in 1561;San Juan, in 1562;San Miguel de Tucumán, in 1565.Juan de GarayfoundedSanta Fein 1573 and the same yearJerónimo Luis de Cabreraset upCórdoba.Garay went further south to re-found Buenos Aires in 1580.San Luiswas established in 1596.
TheSpanish Empiresubordinated the economic potential of the Argentine territory to the immediate wealth of the silver and gold mines inBoliviaand Peru, and as such it became part of theViceroyalty of Peruuntil the creation of theViceroyalty of the Río de la Platain 1776 with Buenos Aires as its capital.
Buenos Aires repelledtwo ill-fated British invasionsin 1806 and 1807.The ideas of theAge of Enlightenmentand the example of the firstAtlantic Revolutionsgenerated criticism of theabsolutist monarchythat ruled the country. As in the rest of Spanish America, the overthrow ofFerdinand VIIduring thePeninsular Warcreated great concern.
Beginning a process from which Argentina was to emerge as successor state to the Viceroyalty,the 1810May Revolutionreplaced the viceroyBaltasar Hidalgo de Cisneroswith theFirst Junta, a new government inBuenos Airesmade up from locals.In the first clashes of the Independence War the Junta crushed a royalistcounter-revolution in Córdoba,but failed to overcome those of theBanda Oriental,Upper PeruandParaguay, which later became independent states.The French-ArgentineHippolyte Bouchardthen brought his fleet to wage war against Spain overseas and attackedSpanish California,Spanish PeruandSpanish Philippines. He secured the allegiance of escaped Filipinos in San Blas who defected from the Spanish to join the Argentine navy, due to common Argentine and Philippine grievances against Spanish colonization.Jose de San Martin's brother,Juan Fermín de San Martín, was already in the Philippines and drumming up revolutionary fervor prior to this.At a later date, the Argentine sign of Inca origin, theSun of Maywas adopted as a symbol by the Filipinos in thePhilippine Revolutionagainst Spain. He also secured the diplomatic recognition of Argentina from KingKamehameha Iof theKingdom of Hawaii. Historian Pacho O'Donnell affirms that Hawaii was the first state that recognized Argentina's independence.He was finally arrested in 1819 by Chilean patriots.
Revolutionaries split into two antagonist groups: theCentralistsand theFederalists—a move that would define Argentina's first decades of independence.TheAssembly of the Year XIIIappointedGervasio Antonio de Posadasas Argentina's firstSupreme Director.
On 9 July 1816, theCongress of Tucumánformalized theDeclaration of Independence,which is now celebrated as Independence Day, a national holiday.One year later GeneralMartín Miguel de Güemesstopped royalists on the north. GeneralJosé de San MartínjoinedBernardo O'Higgins, and they led a combined armyacross the Andesand secured the independence of Chile; then it was sent by O'Higgins orders to the Spanish stronghold ofLimaand proclaimed theindependence of Peru.In 1819 Buenos Aires enacted acentralist constitutionthat was soonabrogatedby federalists.
Some of the most important figures of Argentine independence made a proposal known as theInca planof 1816, which proposed that theUnited Provinces of the Río de la Plata(Present Argentina) should be a monarchy, led by a descendant of theInca. Juan Bautista Túpac Amaru (half-brother ofTúpac Amaru II) was proposed as monarch.Some examples of those who supported this proposal wereManuel Belgrano,José de San MartínandMartín Miguel de Güemes. TheCongress of Tucumánfinally decided to reject the Inca plan, creating instead a republican, centralist state.
The 1820Battle of Cepeda, fought between the Centralists and the Federalists, resulted in theend of the Supreme Director rule. In 1826 Buenos Aires enacted anothercentralist constitution, withBernardino Rivadaviabeing appointed as the first president of the country. However, the interior provinces soon rose against him, forced his resignation and discarded the constitution.Centralists and Federalists resumed the civil war; the latter prevailed and formed theArgentine Confederationin 1831, led byJuan Manuel de Rosas.During his regime he faced aFrench blockade(1838–1840), theWar of the Confederation(1836–1839), and anAnglo-French blockade(1845–1850), but remained undefeated and prevented further loss of national territory.His trade restriction policies, however, angered the interior provinces and in 1852Justo José de Urquiza, another powerfulcaudillo,beat him out of power. As the new president of the Confederation, Urquiza enacted theliberaland federal 1853 Constitution.Buenos Aires secededbut was forced back into the Confederation after being defeated in the 1859Battle of Cepeda.
Overpowering Urquiza in the 1861Battle of Pavón,Bartolomé Mitresecured Buenos Aires' predominance and was elected as the first president of the reunified country. He was followed byDomingo Faustino SarmientoandNicolás Avellaneda; these three presidencies set up the basis of the modern Argentine State.
Starting withJulio Argentino Rocain 1880, ten consecutive federal governments emphasizedliberal economic policies. Themassive wave of European immigrationthey promoted—second only to the United States'—led to a near-reinvention of Argentine society and economy that by 1908 had placed the country as the seventh wealthiestdeveloped nationin the world. Driven by thisimmigrationwave and decreasing mortality, the Argentine population grew fivefold and the economy 15-fold:from 1870 to 1910, Argentina'swheatexports went from 100,000 to 2,500,000 t (110,000 to 2,760,000 short tons) per year, while frozen beef exports increased from 25,000 to 365,000 t (28,000 to 402,000 short tons) per year,placing Argentina as one of the world's top five exporters.Its railway mileage rose from 503 to 31,104 km (313 to 19,327 mi).Fostered by a newpublic, compulsory, free and secular educationsystem,literacyquickly increased from 22% to 65%, a level higher than mostLatin Americannations would reach even fifty years later.Furthermore, realGDPgrew so fast that despite the huge immigration influx,per capita incomebetween 1862 and 1920 went from 67% of developed country levels to 100%:In 1865, Argentina was already one of the top 25 nations by per capita income. By 1908, it had surpassed Denmark, Canada and the Netherlands to reach 7th place—behind Switzerland, New Zealand, Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Belgium. Argentina's per capita income was 70% higher than Italy's, 90% higher than Spain's, 180% higher than Japan's and 400% higher thanBrazil's.Despite these unique achievements, the country was slow to meet its original goals of industrialization:after the steep development of capital-intensive local industries in the 1920s, a significant part of the manufacturing sector remained labour-intensive in the 1930s.
Between 1878 and 1884, the so-calledConquest of the Desertoccurred, with the purpose of tripling the Argentine territory by means of the constant confrontations between natives and Criollos in the border,and the appropriation of the indigenous territories. The first conquest consisted of a series of military incursions into the Pampa and Patagonian territories dominated by the indigenous peoples,distributing them among the members of theSociedad Rural Argentina, financiers of the expeditions.The conquest of Chaco lasted up to the end of the century,since its full ownership of the national economic system only took place when the mere extraction of wood andtanninwas replaced by the production ofcotton.The Argentine government consideredindigenous peopleas inferior beings, without the same rights as Criollos and Europeans.
In 1912, PresidentRoque Sáenz Peñaenacteduniversal and secret male suffrage, which allowedHipólito Yrigoyen, leader of theRadical Civic Union(or UCR), to winthe 1916 election. He enacted social and economic reforms and extended assistance to small farms and businesses. Argentina stayed neutral duringWorld War I. The second administration of Yrigoyen faced an economic crisis, precipitated by theGreat Depression.
In 1930, Yrigoyenwas ousted from powerby the military led byJosé Félix Uriburu. Although Argentina remained among the fifteen richest countries until mid-century,thiscoup d'étatmarks the start of the steady economic and social decline that pushed the country back into underdevelopment.
Uriburu ruled for two years; thenAgustín Pedro Justowas elected in afraudulent election, and signed a controversialtreaty with the United Kingdom. Argentinastayed neutral during World War II, a decision that had full British support but was rejected by the United States after theattack on Pearl Harbor. In 1943a military coup d'étatled byGeneral Arturo Rawsontoppled the democratically elected government ofRamón Castillo. Under pressure from the United States, later Argentina declared war on the Axis Powers (on 27 March 1945, roughly a month before theend of World War II in Europe).
During the Rawson dictatorship a relatively unknown military colonel namedJuan Perónwas named head of the Labour Department. Perón quickly managed to climb the political ladder, being named defence minister in 1944. Being perceived as a political threat by rivals in the military and the conservative camp, he was forced to resign in 1945, and was arrested days later. He was finally released under mounting pressure from both his base and several allied unions.He later became president after a landslide victory over theUCRin the1946 general electionas theLabourcandidate.
TheLabour Party(later renamedJusticialist Party), the most powerful and influential party in Argentine history, came into power with the rise of Juan Perón to the presidency in 1946. Henationalizedstrategic industries and services, improved wages and working conditions, paid the fullexternal debtand claimed he achieved nearlyfull employment. He pushed Congress to enactwomen's suffragein 1947,and developed a system of social assistance for the most vulnerable sectors of society.The economy began to decline in 1950 due in part to government expenditures and theprotectionisteconomic policies.
He also engaged in a campaign of political suppression. Anyone who was perceived to be a political dissident or potential rival was subject to threats, physical violence and harassment. The Argentineintelligentsia, the middle-class, university students, and professors were seen as particularly troublesome. Perón fired over 2,000 university professors and faculty members from all major public education institutions.
Perón tried to bring most trade and labour unions under his thumb, regularly resorting to violence when needed. For instance, the meat-packers union leader,Cipriano Reyes, organized strikes in protest against the government after elected labour movement officials were forcefully replaced by Peronist puppets from thePeronist Party. Reyes was soon arrested on charges of terrorism, though the allegations were never substantiated. Reyes, who was never formally charged, was tortured in prison for five years and only released after the regime's downfall in 1955.
Perónmanaged to get re-elected in 1951. His wifeEva Perón, who played a critical role in the party, died of cancer in 1952. As the economy continued to tank, Perón started losing popular support, and came to be seen as a threat to the national process. The Navy took advantage of Perón's withering political power, andbombed the Plaza de Mayoin 1955. Perón survived the attack, but a few months later, during theLiberating Revolutioncoup, he was deposed and went intoexilein Spain.
The new head of State,Pedro Eugenio Aramburu,proscribedPeronism and banned the party from any future elections.Arturo Frondizifrom theUCRwon the1958 general election.He encouraged investment to achieve energetic and industrial self-sufficiency, reversed a chronictrade deficitand lifted the ban on Peronism; yet his efforts to stay on good terms with both the Peronists and the military earned him the rejection of both and a new coup forced him out.Amidst the political turmoil, Senate leaderJosé María Guidoreacted swiftly and applied anti-power vacuumlegislation, ascending to the presidency himself; elections were repealed and Peronism was prohibited once again.Arturo Illiawaselected in 1963and led an increase in prosperity across the board; however he was overthrown in 1966 by another militarycoup d'étatled by GeneralJuan Carlos Onganíain the self-proclaimedArgentine Revolution, creating a new military government that sought to rule indefinitely.
Following several years of military rule,Alejandro Agustín Lanussewas appointed president by themilitary juntain 1971. Under increasing political pressure for the return of democracy, Lanusse called for elections in 1973. Perón was banned from running but the Peronist party was allowed to participate. The presidential elections were won by Perón's surrogate candidate,Hector Cámpora, a left-wing Peronist, who took office on 25 May 1973. A month later, in June, Perón returned from Spain. One of Cámpora's first presidential actions was to grant amnesty to members of organizations that had carried out political assassinations and terrorist attacks, and to those who had been tried and sentenced to prison by judges. Cámpora's months-long tenure in government was beset by political and social unrest. Over 600 social conflicts,strikes, andfactory occupationstook place within a single month.Even though far-left terrorist organizations had suspended their armed struggle, their joining with theparticipatory democracyprocess was interpreted as a direct threat by the Peronist right-wing faction.
Amid a state of political, social, and economic upheaval, Cámpora and Vice President Vicente Solano Lima resigned in July 1973, calling for new elections, but this time with Perón as the Justicialist Party nominee. Perón won the election with his wifeIsabel Perónas vice president. Perón's third term was marked by escalating conflict between left and right-wing factions within the Peronist party, as well as the return of armed terror guerrilla groups such as the GuevaristERP, leftist PeronistMontoneros, and the state-backed far-rightTriple A. After a series of heart attacks and signs of pneumonia in 1974, Perón's health deteriorated quickly. He suffered a final heart attack on Monday, 1 July 1974, and died at 13:15. He was 78 years old. After his death,Isabel Perón, his wife and vice president, succeeded him in office. During her presidency, a military junta, along with the Peronists' far-right fascist faction, once again became thede factohead of state. Isabel Perón served as President of Argentina from 1974 until 1976, when she was ousted by the military. Her short presidency was marked by the collapse of Argentine political and social systems, leading to a constitutional crisis that paved the way for a decade of instability, left-wing terrorist guerrilla attacks, and state-sponsored terrorism.
The "Dirty War" (Spanish:Guerra Sucia) was part ofOperation Condor, which included the participation of other right-wing dictatorships in theSouthern Cone. The Dirty War involvedstate terrorismin Argentina and elsewhere in the Southern Cone against political dissidents, with military and security forces employing urban and rural violence against left-wing guerrillas, political dissidents, and anyone believed to be associated with socialism or somehow contrary to theneoliberaleconomic policies of the regime.Victims of the violence in Argentina alone included an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 left-wing activists and militants, including trade unionists, students, journalists,Marxists,Peronistguerrillas,and alleged sympathizers. Most of the victims were casualties ofstate terrorism. The opposing guerrillas' victims numbered nearly 500–540 military and police officialsand up to 230 civilians.Argentina received technical support and military aid from the United States government during theJohnson,Nixon,Ford,Carter, andReaganadministrations.
The exact chronology of therepressionis still debated, yet the roots of the long political war may have started in 1969 when trade unionists were targeted for assassination by Peronist and Marxist paramilitaries. Individual cases ofstate-sponsored terrorismagainst Peronism and the left can be traced back even further to theBombing of Plaza de Mayoin 1955. TheTrelew massacreof 1972, the actions of theArgentine Anticommunist Alliancecommencing in 1973, andIsabel Perón's "annihilation decrees" against left-wing guerrillas duringOperativo Independencia(Operation Independence) in 1975, are also possible events signaling the beginning of the Dirty War.
Onganía shut down Congress, banned all political parties, and dismantled student and worker unions. In 1969, popular discontent led to two massive protests: theCordobazoand theRosariazo. The terrorist guerrilla organizationMontoneroskidnapped and executed Aramburu.The newly chosen head of government,Alejandro Agustín Lanusse, seeking to ease the growing political pressure, allowedHéctor José Cámporato become the Peronist candidate instead of Perón. Cámpora won theMarch 1973 election, issuedpardonsfor condemned guerrilla members, and then secured Perón's return from his exile in Spain.
On the day Perón returned to Argentina, the clash between Peronist internal factions—right-wingunion leaders andleft-wingyouth from the Montoneros—resulted in theEzeiza Massacre. Overwhelmed by political violence, Cámpora resigned and Perón won the followingSeptember 1973 electionwith his third wifeIsabelas vice-president. Heexpelled Montoneros from the partyand they became once again a clandestine organization.José López Regaorganized theArgentine Anticommunist Alliance(AAA) to fight against them and thePeople's Revolutionary Army(ERP).
Perón died in July 1974 and was succeeded by his wife, who signed a secret decree empowering the military and the police to "annihilate" the left-wing subversion,stopping ERP's attemptto start a rural insurgence in Tucumán province.Isabel Perón was oustedone year later by a junta of the combined armed forces, led by army generalJorge Rafael Videla. They initiated theNational Reorganization Process, often shortened toProceso.
TheProcesoshut down Congress, removed the judges on the Supreme Court, banned political parties and unions, and resorted to employing theforced disappearanceof suspected guerrilla members including individuals suspected of being associated with the left-wing. By the end of 1976, the Montoneros had lost nearly 2,000 members and by 1977, the ERP was completely subdued. Nevertheless, the severely weakened Montoneros launched a counterattack in 1979, which was quickly put down, effectively ending the guerrilla threat and securing the junta's position in power.
In March 1982, an Argentine force took control of the British territory ofSouth Georgiaand, on 2 April, Argentinainvaded the Falkland Islands. The United Kingdom dispatched a task force to regain possession. Argentina surrendered on 14 June and its forces were taken home. Street riots in Buenos Aires followed the humiliating defeat and the military leadership stood down.Reynaldo Bignonereplaced Galtieri and began to organize the transition to democratic governance.
Raúl Alfonsínwon the1983 electionscampaigning for the prosecution of those responsible forhuman rightsviolations during theProceso: theTrial of the Juntasand other martial courts sentenced all the coup's leaders but, under military pressure, he also enacted theFull StopandDue Obediencelaws,which halted prosecutions further down thechain of command. The worsening economic crisis andhyperinflationreduced his popular support and the PeronistCarlos Menemwon the1989 election. Soon after,riots forced Alfonsín to an early resignation.
Menem embraced and enactedneoliberalpolicies:afixed exchange rate, businessderegulation,privatizations, and the dismantling ofprotectionistbarriers normalized the economy in the short term. He pardoned the officers who had been sentenced during Alfonsín's government. The1994 Constitutional Amendmentallowed Menem tobe elected for a second term. With the economy beginning to decline in 1995, and with increasing unemployment and recession,the UCR, led byFernando de la Rúa, returned to the presidency in the1999 elections.
De la Rúa left Menem's economic plan in effect despite the worsening crisis, which led to growing social discontent.Massivecapital flightfrom the country was responded to with afreezing of bank accounts, generating further turmoil. TheDecember 2001 riotsforced him to resign.Congress appointedEduardo Duhaldeas acting president, who revoked the fixed exchange rate established by Menem,causing many working- and middle-class Argentines to lose a significant portion of their savings. By late 2002, the economic crisis began to recede, but the assassination of twopiqueterosby the police caused political unrest, prompting Duhalde to move elections forward.Néstor Kirchnerwaselected as the new president. On 26 May 2003, he was sworn in.
Boosting theneo-Keynesianeconomic policieslaid by Duhalde, Kirchner ended the economic crisis attaining significant fiscal and trade surpluses, and rapidGDPgrowth.Under his administration, Argentinarestructured its defaulted debtwith an unprecedented discount of about 70% on most bonds, paid off debts with theInternational Monetary Fund,purged the military of officers with dubious human rights records,nullified and voidedthe Full Stop and Due Obedience laws,ruled them as unconstitutional, and resumed legal prosecution of the Junta's crimes. He did not run for reelection, promoting instead the candidacy of his wife, senatorCristina Kirchnerwho won the2007and2011elections.DuringKirchner's presidecypromoted foreign relations with countries such as Venezuela, Iran, and Cuba, whilst US and UK relations increasingly strained. Despite increased renewable energy production and subsidies during her tenure, the overall economy had been sluggish since 2011.
On 22 November 2015, after a tie in the first round ofpresidential elections on 25 October,centre-right coalitioncandidateMauricio Macriwon the firstballotagein Argentina's history, beatingFront for VictorycandidateDaniel Scioliand becoming president-elect.Macri was the first democratically elected non-peronistpresident since 1916 that managed to complete his term in office without being overthrown.He took office on 10 December 2015 and inherited an economy with a high inflation rate and in a poor shape.In April 2016, theMacri governmentintroduced neoliberal austerity measures intended to tackleinflationand overblown public deficits.Under Macri's administration, economic recovery remained elusive with GDP shrinking 3.4%, inflation totaling 240%, billions of US dollars issued in sovereign debt, and mass poverty increasing by the end of his term.He ran for re-election in 2019 but lost by nearly eight percentage points toAlberto Fernández, the Justicialist Party candidate.
Fernández and vice president Cristina Kirchner took office in December 2019,just months before theCOVID-19 pandemic hit Argentinaand among accusations ofcorruption,briberyandmisuse of public funds during Néstor and Cristina Kirchner's presidencies.In November 2021, the centre-left coalition of Argentina's ruling Peronist party,Frente de Todos(Front for Everyone), lost its majority in Congress, for the first time in almost 40 years, in midtermlegislative elections. The election victory of the centre-right coalition,Juntos por el Cambio(Together for Change) limited Fernández' power during his final two years in office. Losing control of the Senate made it difficult for him to make key appointments, including to the judiciary. It also forced him to negotiate with the opposition on every initiative send to the legislature.
In April 2023, Fernández announced that he would not seek re-election in the nextpresidential election.The November2023 electionrun-off ended in a win for libertarian outsiderJavier Mileiwith 55.7% of the vote against 44.4% to ruling coalition candidateSergio Massa.Milei's presidencybegan on10 December 2023.
With a mainland surface area of 2,780,400 km(1,073,518 sq mi),Argentina is located insouthern South America, sharing land borders with Chile across theAndesto the west;Bolivia and Paraguay to the north; Brazil to the northeast,Uruguayand theSouth Atlantic Oceanto the east;and theDrake Passageto the south;for an overall land border length of 9,376 km (5,826 mi). Its coastal border over theRío de la PlataandSouth Atlantic Oceanis 5,117 km (3,180 mi) long.
Argentina's highest point isAconcaguain theMendoza province(6,959 m (22,831 ft) above sea level),also the highest point in theSouthernandWestern Hemispheres.The lowest point isLaguna del Carbónin theSan Julián Great DepressionSanta Cruz province(−105 m (−344 ft) below sea level,also the lowest point in the Southern and Western Hemispheres, and the seventh lowest point on Earth).
The northernmost point is at the confluence of theGrande de San Juanand Mojinete rivers inJujuy province; the southernmost isCape San PíoinTierra del Fuego province; the easternmost is northeast ofBernardo de Irigoyen, Misionesand the westernmost is withinLos Glaciares National Parkin Santa Cruz province.The maximum north–south distance is 3,694 km (2,295 mi), while the maximum east–west one is 1,423 km (884 mi).
Some of the major rivers are theParaná,Uruguay—which join to form the Río de la Plata,Paraguay,Salado,Negro,Santa Cruz,Pilcomayo,BermejoandColorado.These rivers are discharged into theArgentine Sea, the shallow area of the Atlantic Ocean over thePatagonian Shelf, an unusually widecontinental platform.Its waters are influenced by two major ocean currents: the warmBrazil Currentand the coldFalklands Current.
Argentina is one of the mostbiodiversecountries in the worldhosting one of the greatestecosystemvarieties in the world: 15 continental zones, 2 marine zones, and the Antarctic region are all represented in its territory.This huge ecosystem variety has led to a biological diversity that is among the world's largest:9,372 cataloguedvascular plantspecies (ranked 24th);1,038 catalogued bird species (ranked 14th);375 cataloguedmammalspecies (ranked 12th);338 cataloguedreptilianspecies (ranked 16th); and 162 cataloguedamphibianspecies (ranked 19th).
In Argentinaforest coveris around 10% of the total land area, equivalent to 28,573,000 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, down from 35,204,000 hectares (ha) in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 27,137,000 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 1,436,000 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to beprimary forest(consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 7% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 0% of the forest area was reported to be underpublic ownership, 4%private ownershipand 96% with ownership listed as other or unknown.
The originalpampahad virtually no trees; some imported species such as theAmerican sycamoreoreucalyptusare present along roads or in towns and country estates (estancias). The only tree-like plant native to the pampa is the evergreenOmbú. The surface soils of the pampa are a deep black colour, primarilymollisols, known commonly ashumus. This makes the region one of the most agriculturally productive on Earth; however, this is also responsible for decimating much of the original ecosystem, to make way for commercial agriculture.The western pampas receive less rainfall, thisdry pampais a plain of short grasses orsteppe.
TheNational Parks of Argentinamake up a network of 35national parksin Argentina. The parks cover a very varied set of terrains andbiotopes, fromBaritú National Parkon the northern border withBoliviatoTierra del Fuego National Parkin the far south of the continent. TheAdministración de Parques Nacionales(National Parks Administration) is the agency that preserves and manages these national parks along withNatural monumentsandNational Reserveswithin the country.Argentina had a 2018Forest Landscape Integrity Indexmean score of 7.21/10, ranking it 47th globally out of 172 countries.
In general, Argentina has four main climate types: warmhumid subtropical, moderate humid subtropical,arid, andcold, all determined by the expanse across latitude, range in altitude, and relief features.Although the most populated areas are generallytemperate, Argentina has an exceptional amount of climate diversity,ranging fromsubtropicalin the north topolarin the far south.Consequently, there is a wide variety ofbiomesin the country, includingSubtropical rainforests,semi-aridandaridregions,temperate plainsin thePampas, and coldsubantarcticin the south.The average annual precipitation ranges from 150 millimetres (6 in) in the driest parts ofPatagoniato over 2,000 millimetres (79 in) in the westernmost parts of Patagonia and the northeastern parts of the country.Mean annual temperatures range from 5 °C (41 °F) in the far south to 25 °C (77 °F) in the north.
Major wind currents include the coolPampero Windsblowing on the flat plains of Patagonia and the Pampas; following the cold front, warm currents blow from the north in middle and late winter, creating mild conditions.TheSudestadausually moderates cold temperatures but brings very heavy rains, rough seas andcoastal flooding. It is most common in late autumn and winter along the central coast and in the Río de la Plata estuary.TheZonda, ahot dry wind, affects Cuyo and the central Pampas. Squeezed of all moisture during the 6,000 m (19,685 ft) descent from the Andes, Zonda winds can blow for hours with gusts up to 120 km/h (75 mph), fueling wildfires and causing damage; between June and November, when the Zonda blows, snowstorms andblizzard(viento blanco) conditions usually affect higher elevations.
Climate change in Argentinais predicted to have significant effects on the living conditions in Argentina.Theclimate of Argentinais changing with regards to precipitation patterns and temperatures. The highest increases in precipitation (from the period 1960–2010) have occurred in the eastern parts of the country. The increase in precipitation has led to more variability in precipitation from year to year in the northern parts of the country, with a higher risk of prolongeddroughts, disfavouring agriculture in theseregions.
In the 20th century, Argentina experienced significant political turmoil and democratic reversals.Between 1930 and 1976, thearmed forcesoverthrew six governments in Argentina;and the country alternated periods of democracy (1912–1930, 1946–1955, and 1973–1976) with periods of restricted democracy andmilitary rule.Following atransitionthat began in 1983,full-scale democracy in Argentina was reestablished.Argentina's democracy endured through the2001–02 crisisand to the present day; it is regarded as more robust than both its pre-1983 predecessors and other democracies inLatin America.According to theV-Dem Democracy indices, Argentina in 2023 was the second mostelectoral democratic country in Latin America.
Argentina is afederalconstitutional republic andrepresentative democracy.The government is regulated by a system ofchecks and balancesdefined by theConstitution of Argentina, the country's supreme legal document. Theseat of governmentis the city ofBuenos Aires, as designated byCongress.Suffrage isuniversal,equal,secretandmandatory.
The federal government is composed of three branches. TheLegislativebranch consists of thebicameralCongress, made up of theSenateand theChamber of Deputies. The Congress makesfederal law,declares war, approvestreatiesand has thepower of the purseand ofimpeachment, by which it can remove sitting members of the government.The Chamber of Deputies represents the people and has 257 voting members elected to a four-year term. Seats are apportioned among the provinces by population every tenth year.As of 2014ten provinces have just five deputies while theBuenos Aires Province, being the most populous one, has 70. The Chamber of Senators represents the provinces, and has 72 members electedat-largeto six-year terms, with each province having three seats; one-third of Senate seats are up for election every other year.At least one-third of the candidates presented by the parties must be women.
In theExecutivebranch, thePresidentis thecommander-in-chiefof the military, canvetolegislative billsbefore they become law—subject to Congressional override—and appoints themembers of the Cabinetand other officers, who administer and enforce federal laws and policies.The President is electeddirectlyby the vote of the people, serves a four-year term and may be elected to office no more than twice in a row.
TheJudicialbranch includes theSupreme Courtand lowerfederal courtsinterpret laws andoverturn thosethey findunconstitutional.The Judicial is independent of the Executive and the Legislative. The Supreme Court has seven members appointed by the President—subject to Senate approval—who serve for life. The lower courts' judges are proposed by theCouncil of Magistracy(a secretariat composed of representatives of judges, lawyers, researchers, the Executive and the Legislative), and appointed by the president on Senate approval.
Argentina is a federation of twenty-three provinces and oneautonomous city, Buenos Aires. Provinces are divided for administration purposes intodepartmentsandmunicipalities, except for Buenos Aires Province, which is divided intopartidos. The City of Buenos Aires is divided intocommunes.
Provinces hold all the power that they chose not to delegate to the federal government;they must be representative republics and must not contradict the Constitution.Beyond this they are fully autonomous: they enact their own constitutions,freely organize their local governments,and own and manage their natural and financial resources.Some provinces have bicameral legislatures, while others haveunicameralones.
La Pampaand Chaco became provinces in 1951. Misiones did so in 1953, andFormosa,Neuquén,Río Negro,Chubutand Santa Cruz, in 1955. The last national territory, Tierra del Fuego, became theTierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Provincein 1990.It has three components, although two are nominal because they are not under Argentine sovereignty. The first is the Argentine part of Tierra del Fuego; the second is an area of Antarctica claimed by Argentina that overlaps with similar areas claimed by the UK and Chile; the third comprises the two disputed British Overseas Territories of theFalkland IslandsandSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
Foreign policy is handled by theMinistry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship, which answers to thePresident. The country is one of theG-15andG-20 major economiesof the world, and a founding member of theUN,WBG,WTOandOAS.
In 2012Argentina was elected againto a two-year non-permanent position on theUnited Nations Security Counciland is participating in major peacekeeping operations inHaiti,Cyprus,Western Saharaand theMiddle East.Argentina is described as amiddle power.
A prominent Latin Americanand Southern Coneregional power, Argentina co-foundedOEIandCELAC.
It is also a founding member of theMercosurblock, having Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay andVenezuelaas partners. Since 2002 the country has emphasized its key role inLatin American integration, and the block—which has some supranational legislative functions—is its first international priority.
Argentina claims 965,597 km(372,819 sq mi) inAntarctica, where it has the world's oldestcontinuous state presence, since 1904.This overlaps claims byChileand theUnited Kingdom, though all such claims fall under the provisions of the 1961Antarctic Treaty, of which Argentina is a founding signatory and permanent consulting member, with theAntarctic Treaty Secretariatbeing based in Buenos Aires.
Argentinadisputes sovereigntyover the Falkland Islands, andSouth Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands,which are administered by the United Kingdom asOverseas Territories. Argentina is a party to theRome Statute of the International Criminal Court.Argentina is aMajor non-NATO allysince 1998and anOECDcandidate country since January 2022.
The president holds the title of commander-in-chief of the Argentine Armed Forces, as part of a legal framework that imposes a strict separation between national defence and internal security systems:TheNational Defence System, an exclusive responsibility of the federal government,coordinated by theMinistry of Defence, and comprising theArmy, theNavyand theAir Force.Ruled and monitored by Congressthrough the Houses' Defence Committees,it is organized on the essential principle of legitimate self-defence: the repelling of any external military aggression in order to guarantee freedom of the people, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity.Its secondary missions include committing to multinational operations within the framework of the United Nations, participating in internal support missions, assisting friendly countries, and establishing a sub-regional defence system.
Military serviceis voluntary, with enlistment age between 18 and 24 years old and noconscription.Argentina's defence has historically been one of the best equipped in the region, even managingits own weapon research facilities, shipyards, ordnance, tank and plane factories.However, real military expenditures declined steadily after the defeat in theFalklands/Malvinas Warand the defence budget in 2011 was only about 0.74% of GDP, a historical minimum,below the Latin American average. Within the defence budget itself, funding for training and even basic maintenance has been significantly cut, a factor contributing to theaccidental loss of the Argentine submarine San Juanin 2017. The result has been a steady erosion of Argentine military capabilities, with some arguing that Argentina had, by the end of the 2010s, ceased to be a capable military power.
TheInterior Security Systemis jointly administered by the federal and subscribing provincial governments.At the federal level it is coordinated by the Interior,Securityand Justice ministries, and monitored by Congress.It is enforced by theFederal Police; thePrefecture, which fulfillscoast guardduties; theGendarmerie, which servesborder guardtasks; and theAirport Security Police.At the provincial level it is coordinated by the respective internal security ministries and enforced by local police agencies.
Argentina was the only South American country to send warships and cargo planes in 1991 to theGulf WarunderUNmandate and has remained involved inpeacekeepingefforts in multiple locations such asUNPROFORinCroatia/Bosnia,Gulf of Fonseca,UNFICYPinCyprus(where among Army and Marines troops the Air Force provided the UN Air contingent since 1994) andMINUSTAHinHaiti. Argentina is the only Latin American country to maintain troops inKosovoduringSFOR(and laterEUFOR) operations wherecombat engineersof the Argentine Armed Forces are embedded in anItalian brigade.
In 2007, an Argentine contingent including helicopters, boats and water purification plants was sent to helpBoliviaagainst their worst floods in decades.In 2010 the Armed Forces were also involved inHaitiandChilehumanitarian responses after their respective earthquakes.
Benefiting from richnatural resources, a highly literate population, a diversified industrial base, and an export-oriented agricultural sector, the economy of Argentina is Latin America's third-largest,and the second-largest inSouth America.Argentina was one of the richest countries in the world, on the 20th century in 1913 it was one of the wealthiest countries in the world by GDP per capitaIt has a "very high" rating on the Human Development Indexand ranks 66th bynominal GDP per capita,with a considerableinternal marketsize and a growing share of thehigh-techsector. As amiddle emerging economyand one of the world's top developing nations, it is a member of theG-20 major economies.
Argentina is the largest producer in the world ofyerba-maté(due to the large domestic consumption ofmaté), one of the five largest producers in the world ofsoybeans,maize,sunflower seed,lemonandpear, one of the ten largest producers in the world ofbarley,grape,artichoke,tobaccoandcotton, and one of the 15 largest producers in the world ofwheat,sugarcane,sorghumandgrapefruit. It is the largest producer in South America of wheat, sunflower seed, barley, lemon and pear.Inwine, Argentina is usually among the tenlargest producers in the world.Argentina is also a traditional meat exporter, having been, in 2019, the 4th world producer ofbeef, with a production of 3 million tons (only behind US, Brazil and China), the 4th world producer ofhoney, and the 10th world producer ofwool, in addition to other relevant productions.
Themining industryof Argentina is less prominent compared to other countries but stands out as the fourth-largest producer oflithium,the 11th-largest ofsilverand 17th-largest ofgoldworldwide. The country also excels innatural gasproduction, being the largest producer in South America and the 18th-largest globally. Additionally Argentina produces an average of 500,000 barrels/day ofpetroleum, despite the under-utilization of the Vaca Muerta field due to technical and financial limitations in resource extraction.
In 2012,manufacturingaccounted for 20.3% of GDP—the largest sector in the nation's economy.Well-integrated into Argentine agriculture, half of the industrial exports have rural origin.With a 6.5% production growth rate in 2011,the diversified manufacturing sector rests on a steadily growing network ofindustrial parks(314 as of 2013)In 2012the leading sectors by volume were: food processing, beverages and tobacco products; motor vehicles and auto parts;textilesand leather;refinery productsandbiodiesel; chemicals and pharmaceuticals;steel,aluminiumandiron; industrial and farm machinery; home appliances and furniture; plastics and tires; glass and cement; and recording and print media.In addition, Argentina has since long been one of the top five wine-producing countries in the world.
Highinflation—a weakness of the Argentine economy for decades—has become a trouble once again,with an annual rate of 24.8% in 2017.In 2023 the inflation reached 102.5% among the highest inflation rates in the world.Approximately 43% of the Argentina's population lives below the poverty line as of 2023.To deter it and support the peso, the government imposed foreign currency control.Income distribution, having improved since 2002, is classified as "medium", although it is still considerably unequal.In January 2024, Argentina's poverty rate reached 57.4%, the highest poverty rate in the country since 2004.
Argentina ranks 85th out of 180 countries in theTransparency International's 2017Corruption Perceptions Index,an improvement of 22 positions over its 2014 rankings.Argentina settled its long-standing debt default crisis in 2016 with the so-calledvulture fundsafter the election of Mauricio Macri, allowing Argentina to enter capital markets for the first time in a decade.The government of Argentina defaulted on 22 May 2020 by failing to pay a $500 million bill by its due date to its creditors. Negotiations for the restructuring of $66 billion of its debt continue.
Poverty in Argentina was 41.7 percent at the end of the second half of 2023.However, in November 2024, Argentina's monthly inflation rate slowed to 2.4%, the lowest in over four years. Annual inflation was expected to end 2024 closer to 100%.. Favourable results and normalization in Argentina’s economy are expected to continue in 2025. The annual inflation rate, which was 211% in 2023,  is expected to be below 30% in 2025.  Economic activity has also begun to recover after the severe recession at the beginning of 2024. The economy is expected to expand by more than 4% in 2025.
The country had 5.57 million visitors in 2013, ranking in terms of international tourist arrivals as the top destination inSouth America, and second inLatin Americaafter Mexico.Revenues from international tourists reachedUS$4.41billion in 2013, down fromUS$4.89billion in 2012.The country's capital city,Buenos Aires, is the most visited city inSouth America.There are 30National Parks of Argentinaincluding manyWorld Heritage Sites.
By 2004Buenos Aires, all provincial capitals except Ushuaia, and all medium-sized towns were interconnected by 69,412 km (43,131 mi) of paved roads, out of a total road network of 231,374 km (143,769 mi).In 2021, the country had about 2,800 km (1,740 mi) ofdual carriageways, most leaving the capitalBuenos Aires, linking it with cities such asRosarioandCórdoba,Santa Fe,Mar del PlataandPaso de los Libres(in border with Brazil), there are alsodual carriagewaysleaving fromMendozatowards the capital, and between Córdoba and Santa Fé, among other locations.Nevertheless, this road infrastructure is still inadequate and cannot handle the sharply growing demand caused by deterioration of the railway system.
Argentina has the largestrailway systemin Latin America, with 36,966 km (22,970 mi) of operating lines in 2008, out of a full network of almost 48,000 km (29,826 mi).This system links all 23 provinces plus Buenos Aires City, and connects with all neighbouring countries.There are four incompatiblegaugesin use; this forces virtually all interregional freight traffic to pass through Buenos Aires.The system has been in decline since the 1940s: regularly running up large budgetary deficits, by 1991 it was transporting 1,400 times less goods than it did in 1973.However, in recent years the system has experienced agreater degree of investmentfrom the state, in both commuter rail lines and long-distance lines, renewing rolling stock and infrastructure.In April 2015, by overwhelming majority theArgentine Senatepassed a law which re-createdFerrocarriles Argentinos(2015), effectively re-nationalizing the country's railways, a move which saw support from all major political parties on both sides of the political spectrum.
In 2012there were about 11,000 km (6,835 mi) ofwaterways,mostly comprising the La Plata, Paraná, Paraguay and Uruguay rivers, with Buenos Aires,Zárate,Campana, Rosario, San Lorenzo, Santa Fe,Barranquerasand San Nicolas de los Arroyos as the mainfluvial ports.
Some of the largestsea portsareLa Plata–Ensenada, Bahía Blanca,Mar del Plata,Quequén–Necochea,Comodoro Rivadavia,Puerto Deseado,Puerto Madryn, Ushuaia andSan Antonio Oeste.
Buenos Aires has historically been the most important port; however since the 1990s the Up-River port region has become dominant: stretching along 67 km (42 mi) of the Paraná river shore in Santa Fe province, it includes 17 ports and in 2013accounted for 50% of all exports.
In 2013there were 161 airports with paved runwaysout of more than a thousand.TheEzeiza International Airport, about 35 km (22 mi) from downtown Buenos Aires,is the largest in the country, followed byCataratas del Iguazúin Misiones, andEl Plumerilloin Mendoza.Aeroparque, in the city of Buenos Aires, is the most important domestic airport.
In 2020, more than 60% of Argentina's electricity came from non-renewable sources such as natural gas, oil and coal. 27% came fromhydropower, 7.3% from wind and solar energy and 4.4% from nuclear energy.At the end of 2021 Argentina was the 21st country in the world in terms of installed hydroelectric power (11.3 GW), the 26th country in the world in terms of installed wind energy (3.2 GW) and the 43rd country in the world in terms of installed solar energy (1.0 GW).
The wind potential of the Patagonia region is considered gigantic, with estimates that the area could provide enough electricity to sustain the consumption of a country like Brazil alone. However, Argentina has faces infrastructural challenges in transferring electricity from wind-rich rural areas to its population hubs
In 1974 it was the first country in Latin America to put in-line a commercial nuclear power plant,Atucha I. Although the Argentine-built parts for that station amounted to 10% of the total, the nuclear fuel it uses are since entirely built in the country. Later nuclear power stations employed a higher percentage of Argentine-built components;Embalse, finished in 1983, a 30% and the 2011Atucha IIreactor a 40%.
Argentines have received threeNobel Prizesin the Sciences.Bernardo Houssay, the first Latin American recipient, discovered the role ofpituitary hormonesin regulatingglucosein animals, and shared theNobel Prize in Physiology or Medicinein 1947.Luis Leloirdiscovered how organisms store energy converting glucose intoglycogenand the compounds which are fundamental inmetabolizingcarbohydrates, receiving theNobel Prize in Chemistryin 1970.César Milsteindid extensive research inantibodies, sharing the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1984. Argentine research has led to treatments forheart diseasesand several forms of cancer.Domingo Liottadesigned and developed the firstartificial heartthat was successfully implanted in a human being in 1969.René Favalorodeveloped the techniques and performed the world's firstcoronary bypass surgery.
Argentina's nuclear programme has been highly successful. In 1957 Argentina was the first country in Latin America to design and build aresearch reactorwith homegrown technology, theRA-1 Enrico Fermi. This reliance on the development of its own nuclear-related technologies, instead of buying them abroad, was a constant of Argentina's nuclear programme conducted by the civilianNational Atomic Energy Commission(CNEA). Nuclear facilities with Argentine technology have been built in Peru, Algeria, Australia and Egypt. In 1983, the country admitted having the capability of producing weapon-gradeuranium, a major step needed to assemblenuclear weapons; since then, however, Argentina has pledged to use nuclear power only for peaceful purposes.As a member of the Board of Governors of theInternational Atomic Energy Agency, Argentina has been a strong voice in support of nuclear non-proliferation effortsand is highly committed to global nuclear security.
Despite its modest budget and numerous setbacks, academics and the sciences in Argentina have enjoyed international respect since the turn of the 1900s, whenLuis Agotedevised the first safe and effective means ofblood transfusionas well asRené Favaloro, who was a pioneer in the improvement of thecoronary artery bypass surgery. Argentine scientists are still on the cutting edge in fields such asnanotechnology,physics,computer sciences, molecular biology, oncology, ecology and cardiology.Juan Maldacena, an Argentine-American scientist, is a leading figure instring theory.
Space research has also become increasingly active in Argentina. Argentine-built satellites include LUSAT-1 (1990), Víctor-1 (1996), PEHUENSAT-1 (2007),and those developed byCONAE, the Argentine space agency, of the SAC series.Argentina has its own satellite programme, nuclear power station designs (4th generation) and public nuclear energy companyINVAP, which provides several countries with nuclear reactors.Established in 1991, theCONAEhas since launched two satellites successfully and,in June 2009, secured an agreement with theEuropean Space Agencyfor the installation of a 35-m diametre antenna and other mission support facilities at thePierre Auger Observatory, the world's foremostcosmic rayobservatory.The facility will contribute to numerous ESA space probes, as well as CONAE's own, domestic research projects. Chosen from 20 potential sites and one of only three such ESA installations in the world, the new antenna will create a triangulation which will allow the ESA to ensure mission coverage around the clockArgentina was ranked 76th in theGlobal Innovation Indexin 2024.
The 2022census[INDEC]conducted by the counted 46,044,703 inhabitants, up from 40,117,096 in 2010.Argentina ranks third in South America in total population, fourth in Latin America and 33rd globally. Its population density of 15 persons per square kilometre of land area is well below the world average of 50 persons. The population growth rate in 2010 was an estimated 1.03% annually, with a birth rate of 17.7 live births per 1,000 inhabitants and a mortality rate of 7.4 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants. Since 2010, the crudenet migration ratehas ranged from below zero to up to four immigrants per 1,000 inhabitants per year.
Argentina is in the midst of ademographic transitionto an older and slower-growing population. The proportion of people under 15 is 25.6%, a little below the world average of 28%, and the proportion of people 65 and older is relatively high at 10.8%. In Latin America, this is second only toUruguayand well above the world average, which is currently 7%. Argentina has a comparatively lowinfant mortality rate. Its birth rate of 2.3 children per woman is considerably below the high of 7.0 children born per woman in 1895,though still nearly twice as high as in Spain or Italy, which are culturally and demographically similar.The median age is 31.9 years andlife expectancyat birth is 77.14 years.
Attitudes towardsLGBT peopleare generally positive within Argentina.In 2010, Argentina became the first country in Latin America, the second in the Americas, and the tenth worldwide to legalizesame-sex marriage.
Argentina is considered a country of immigrants.Argentines usually refer to the country as acrisol de razas(crucible of races, ormelting pot). A 2010 study conducted on 218 individuals by the Argentine geneticistDaniel Corachestablished that the average genetic ancestry of Argentines is 79% European (mainly Italian and Spanish), 18% indigenous and 4.3% African; 63.6% of the tested group had at least one ancestor who wasIndigenous.The majority of Argentines descend from multiple European ethnic groups, primarily ofItalianandSpanishdescent, with over 25 million Argentines (almost 60% of the population) having some partial Italian origins.
Argentina is also home to a notableAsianpopulation, the majority of whom are descended from either West Asians (namelyLebaneseandSyrians)or East Asians (such as theChinese,Koreans, and theJapanese).The latter of whom number around 180,000 individuals. The total number ofArab Argentines(most of whom are of Lebanese or Syrian origin) is estimated to be 1.3 to 3.5 million. Many immigrated from various Asian countries to Argentina during the 19th century (especially during the latter half of the century) and the first half of the 20th century.Most Arab Argentines belong to the Catholic Church (including both the Latin Church and theEastern Catholic Churches) or theEastern Orthodox Church. A minority areMuslims. There are 180,000Alawitesin Argentina.
From the 1970s, immigration has mostly been coming fromBolivia,ParaguayandPeru, with smaller numbers from theDominican Republic, Ecuador andRomania.The Argentine government estimates that 750,000 inhabitants lack official documents and has launched a programmeto encourage illegal immigrants to declare their status in return for two-year residence visas—so far over 670,000 applications have been processed under the programme.As of July 2023, more than 18,500 Russians have come to Argentina after theRussian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Thede factoofficial language isSpanish, spoken by almost all Argentines.The country is the largestSpanish-speaking societythat universally employsvoseo, the use of thepronounvosinstead oftú("you"), which imposes the use of alternative verb forms as well.
Owing to the extensive Argentine geography, Spanish has a strong variation among regions, although the prevalent dialect isRioplatense, primarily spoken in the Pampean and Patagonian regions and accented similarly to theNeapolitan language.Italian and other European immigrants influencedLunfardo—the regional slang—permeating the vernacular vocabulary of other Latin American countries as well.
There are several second languages in widespread use among the Argentine population:English(by 2.8 million people);Italian(by 1.5 million people);Arabic(specially itsNorthern Levantine dialect, by one million people);Standard German(by 200,000 people);Guaraní(by 200,000 people,mostly in Corrientes and Misiones);Catalan(by 174,000 people);Quechua(by 65,000 people, mostly in the Northwest);Wichí(by 53,700 people, mainly in Chacowhere, along withKomandMoqoit, it is officialde jure);Vlax Romani(by 52,000 people);Albanian(by40,000 people);Japanese(by 32,000 people);Aymara(by 30,000 people, mostly in the Northwest);andUkrainian(by 27,000 people).
Christianityis the largest religion in Argentina. The Constitution guaranteesfreedom of religion.Although it enforces neither an official nor a state faith,it givesRoman Catholicisma preferential status.
According to a 2008 CONICET poll, Argentines were 76.5%Catholic, 11.3%AgnosticsandAtheists, 9%Evangelical Protestants, 1.2%Jehovah's Witnesses, and 0.9%Mormons, while 1.2% followed other religions, includingIslam,JudaismandBuddhism.These figures appear to have changed quite significantly in recent years: data recorded in 2017 indicated that Catholics made up 66% of the population, indicating a drop of 10.5% in nine years, and the nonreligious in the country standing at 21% of the population, indicating an almost doubling over the same period.
The country is home to both one of thelargest Muslimandlargest Jewishcommunities in Latin America, the latter being the seventh most populous in the world.Argentina is a member of theInternational Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.
Argentines show high individualization and de-institutionalization of religious beliefs;23.8% claim to always attend religious services; 49.1% seldom do and 26.8% never do.
On 13 March 2013, ArgentineJorge Mario Bergoglio, theCardinalArchbishop of Buenos Aires, waselectedBishop of RomeandSupreme Pontiffof theCatholic Church. He took the name "Francis", and he became the first Pope from either theAmericasor from theSouthern Hemisphere; he is the first Pope born outside of Europe since theelectionofPope Gregory III(who wasSyrian) in 741.
Healthcare is provided through a combination of employer and labour union-sponsored plans (Obras Sociales), government insurance plans, public hospitals and clinics and through private health insurance plans. Healthcare cooperatives number over 300 (of which 200 are related tolabour unions) and provide healthcare for half the population; the national INSSJP (popularly known as PAMI) covers nearly all of the five million senior citizens.
There are more than 153,000 hospital beds, 121,000 physicians and 37,000 dentists (ratios comparable todeveloped nations).The relatively high access to medical care has historically resulted in mortality patterns and trends similar to developed nations': from 1953 to 2005, deaths fromcardiovascular diseaseincreased from 20% to 23% of the total, those fromtumorsfrom 14% to 20%,respiratoryproblems from 7% to 14%,digestivemaladies (non-infectious) from 7% to 11%, strokes a steady 7%, injuries, 6%, andinfectiousdiseases, 4%. Causes related tosenilityled to many of the rest. Infant deaths have fallen from 19% of all deaths in 1953 to 3% in 2005.
The availability of healthcare has also reducedinfant mortalityfrom 70 per 1000 live births in 1948to 12.1 in 2009and raisedlife expectancyat birth from 60 years to 76.Though these figures compare favourably with global averages, they fall short of levels in developed nations and in 2006, Argentina ranked fourth in Latin America.
The Argentine education system consists of four levels.An initial level for children between 45 days to 5 years old, with the last two yearsbeing compulsory. An elementary orlower schoolmandatory level lasting 6 or 7 years.In 2010theliteracy ratewas 98.07%.A secondary orhigh schoolmandatory level lasting 5 or 6 years.In 201038.5% of people over age 20 had completed secondary school.Ahigher level, divided in tertiary, university and post-graduate sub-levels. in 2013there were 47national public universitiesacross the country, as well as 46 private ones.
In 20107.1% of people over age 20 had graduated from university.The public universities ofBuenos Aires,Córdoba,La Plata,Rosario, and theNational Technological Universityare some of the most important. The Argentine state guarantees universal, secular and free-of-charge public education for all levels.Responsibility for educational supervision is organized at the federal and individual provincial states. In the last decades the role of the private sector has grown across all educational stages.
Argentina is highly urbanized, with 92% of its population living in cities:the ten largest metropolitan areas account for half of the population.
About 3 million people live in the city of Buenos Aires, and including the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area it totals around 13 million, making it one of the largest urban areas in the world.The metropolitan areas of Córdoba and Rosario have around 1.3 million inhabitants each.Mendoza, San Miguel de Tucumán, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Salta and Santa Fe have at least half a million people each.
The population is unequally distributed: about 60% live in the Pampas region (21% of the total area), including 15 million people in Buenos Aires province. The provinces of Córdoba and Santa Fe, and the city of Buenos Aires have 3 million each. Seven other provinces have over one million people each: Mendoza, Tucumán, Entre Ríos, Salta, Chaco, Corrientes and Misiones. With 64.3 inhabitants per square kilometre (167/sq mi), Tucumán is the only Argentine province more densely populated than the world average; by contrast, the southern province of Santa Cruz has around 1.1/km(2.8/sq mi).
Argentina is amulticultural countrywith significant European influences. Modern Argentine culture has been largely influenced byItalian,Spanishand other European immigration fromFrance,Russia,United Kingdom, among others. Its cities are largely characterized by both the prevalence of people of European descent, and of conscious imitation of American and European styles in fashion, architecture and design.Museums, cinemas, and galleries are abundant in all the large urban centres, as well as traditional establishments such as literary bars, or bars offeringlive musicof a variety of genres although there are lesser elements ofAmerindianandAfricaninfluences, particularly in the fields of music and art.The other big influence is thegauchosand their traditional country lifestyle of self-reliance.Finally, indigenous American traditions have been absorbed into the general cultural milieu.
Argentine writerErnesto Sabatohas reflected on the nature of the culture of Argentina as follows:
Although Argentina's rich literary history began around 1550,it reached full independence withEsteban Echeverría'sEl Matadero, aromanticlandmark that played a significant role in the development of 19th century's Argentine narrative,split by the ideological divide between the popular, federalist epic ofJosé Hernández'Martín Fierroand the elitist and cultured discourse ofSarmiento's masterpiece,Facundo.
TheModernistmovement advanced into the 20th century including exponents such asLeopoldo Lugonesand poetAlfonsina Storni;it was followed byVanguardism, withRicardo Güiraldes'sDon Segundo Sombraas an important reference.
Jorge Luis Borges, Argentina's most acclaimed writer and one of the foremost figures in thehistory of literature,found new ways of looking at the modern world inmetaphorand philosophical debate and his influence has extended to authors all over the globe. Short stories such asFiccionesandThe Alephare among his most famous works. He was a friend and collaborator ofAdolfo Bioy Casares, who wrote one of the most praisedscience fictionnovels,The Invention of Morel.Julio Cortázar, one of the leading members of theLatin American Boomand a major name in 20th century literature,influenced an entire generation of writers in the Americas and Europe.
A remarkable episode in Argentine literary history is the social and literarial dialectica between the so-calledFlorida Group, named this way because its members used to meet together at theRichmond Cafeteriaat Florida street and published in theMartín Fierromagazine, such asJorge Luis Borges,Leopoldo Marechal,Antonio Berni(artist), among others; versus theBoedo GroupofRoberto Arlt,Cesar Tiempo,Homero Manzi(tango composer), that used to meet at theJapanese Cafeand published their works with theEditorial Claridad, with both the cafe and the publisher located at Boedo Avenue.
Other highly regarded Argentine writers, poets andessayistsincludeEstanislao del Campo,Eugenio Cambaceres,Pedro Bonifacio Palacios,Hugo Wast,Benito Lynch,Enrique Banchs,Oliverio Girondo,Ezequiel Martínez Estrada,Victoria Ocampo,Leopoldo Marechal,Silvina Ocampo,Roberto Arlt,Eduardo Mallea,Manuel Mujica Láinez,Ernesto Sábato,Silvina Bullrich,Rodolfo Walsh,María Elena Walsh,Tomás Eloy Martínez,Manuel Puig,Alejandra Pizarnik, andOsvaldo Soriano.
Tango, aRioplatensemusical genre with European and African influences,is one of Argentina's international cultural symbols.The golden age of tango (1930 to mid-1950s) mirrored that ofjazzandswingin the United States, featuring large orchestras such as those ofOsvaldo Pugliese,Aníbal Troilo,Francisco Canaro,Julio de CaroandJuan d'Arienzo.After 1955, virtuosoAstor PiazzollapopularizedNuevo tango, a subtler and more intellectual trend for the genre.Tango enjoys worldwide popularity nowadays with groups such asGotan Project,BajofondoandTanghetto.
Argentina developed strong classical music and dance scenes that gave rise to renowned artists such asAlberto Ginastera, composer;Alberto Lysy, violinist;Martha ArgerichandEduardo Delgado, pianists;Daniel Barenboim, pianist andsymphonic orchestradirector;José CuraandMarcelo Álvarez, tenors; and toballet dancersJorge Donn,José Neglia,Norma Fontenla,Maximiliano Guerra,Paloma Herrera,Marianela Núñez,Iñaki UrlezagaandJulio Bocca.
A national Argentine folk style emerged in the 1930s from dozens of regional musical genres and went on to influence the entirety ofLatin American music. Some of its interpreters, such asAtahualpa YupanquiandMercedes Sosa, achieved worldwide acclaim. Theromantic balladgenre included singers of international fame such asSandro de América.Tenor saxophonistLeandro "Gato" Barbieriand composer andbig bandconductorLalo Schifrinare among the most internationally successful Argentine jazz musicians.
Argentine rockdeveloped as a distinct musical style in the mid-1960s, when Buenos Aires and Rosario became cradles of aspiring musicians.
Founding bands such asLos Gatos,Sui Generis,AlmendraandManalwere followed bySeru Giran,Los Abuelos de la Nada,Soda StereoandPatricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota, with prominent artists includingGustavo Cerati,Litto Nebbia,Andrés Calamaro,Luis Alberto Spinetta,Charly García,Fito PáezandLeón Gieco.
A dance and a musical genre popular at present isCachengue, a subgenre ofArgentine cumbiaandreggaetonspreading in popularity in nearby countries such asUruguay,Chile,Paraguay, andBolivia.
Buenos Aires is one of the great theatre capitals of the world,with a scene of international caliber centred onCorrientes Avenue, "the street that never sleeps", sometimes referred to as theBroadwayof Buenos Aires.Teatro Colónis a global landmark foroperaand classical performances; its acoustics are considered among the world's top five.
The Argentine film industry has historically been one of the three most developed inLatin American cinema, along with those produced inMexicoandBrazil.Started in 1896; by the early 1930s it had already become Latin America's leading film producer, a place it kept until the early 1950s.The world's firstanimated feature filmswere made and released in Argentina, by cartoonistQuirino Cristiani, in 1917 and 1918.
Argentine films have achieved worldwide recognition: the country has won twoAcademy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, forThe Official Story(1985) andThe Secret in Their Eyes(2009). In addition, Argentine composersLuis Enrique BacalovandGustavo Santaolallahave been honoured withAcademy Awards for Best Original Score, andArmando BóandNicolás Giacoboneshared in theAcademy Award for Best Original Screenplayfor 2014. Also, theArgentine FrenchactressBérénice Bejoreceived a nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actressin 2011 and won theCésar Award for Best Actressand won theBest Actressaward in theCannes Film Festivalfor her role in the filmThe Past.Argentina also has won seventeenGoya Awards for Best Spanish Language Foreign Film, being by far the most awarded country inLatin Americawith twenty-four nominations. Many other Argentine films also have been acclaimed by international critique. In 2013about 100 full-length motion pictures were being created annually.
Some of the best-known Argentine painters areCándido LópezandFlorencio Molina Campos(Naïve style);Ernesto de la CárcovaandEduardo Sívori(Realism);Fernando Fader(Impressionism);Pío Collivadino,Atilio MalinvernoandCesáreo Bernaldo de Quirós(Postimpressionism);Emilio Pettoruti(Cubism);Julio Barragán(Concretismand Cubism)Antonio Berni(Neofigurativism);Roberto AizenbergandXul Solar(Surrealism);Gyula Košice(Constructivism);Eduardo Mac Entyre(Generative art);Luis Seoane,Carlos Torrallardona,Luis Aquino,Alfredo Gramajo Gutiérrez(Modernism);Lucio Fontana(Spatialism);Tomás Maldonado,Guillermo Kuitca(Abstract art);León Ferrari,Marta Minujín(Conceptual art);Gustavo Cabral(Fantasy art), andFabián Pérez (Neoemotionalism).
In 1946 Gyula Košice and others created TheMadí Movementin Argentina, which then spread to Europe and the United States, where it had a significant impact.Tomás Maldonado was one of the main theorists of theUlm Modelof design education, still highly influential globally. Other Argentine artists of worldwide fame includeAdolfo Bellocq, whoselithographshave been influential since the 1920s, andBenito Quinquela Martín, the quintessential port painter, inspired by the immigrant-boundLa Bocaneighbourhood. Internationally laureate sculptorsErminio Blotta,Lola MoraandRogelio Yrurtiaauthored many of the classical evocative monuments of the Argentine cityscape.
The colonization brought theSpanish Baroque architecture, which can still be appreciated in its simplerRioplatensestyle in thereductionofSan Ignacio Miní, theCathedral of Córdoba, and the Cabildo of Luján. Italian and French influences increased at the beginning of the 19th century with strongeclecticovertones that gave the local architecture a unique feeling.
The print media industry is highly developed in Argentina, with more than two hundred newspapers. The major national ones includeClarín(centrist, Latin America's best-seller and the second most widely circulated in the Spanish-speaking world),La Nación(centre-right, published since 1870),Página/12(leftist, founded in 1987),La Voz del Interior(centre, founded in 1904).
Argentina beganthe world's first regular radio broadcastingon 27 August 1920, whenRichard Wagner'sParsifalwas aired by a team of medical students led byEnrique Telémaco Susiniin Buenos Aires'Teatro Coliseo.By 2002there were 260AMand 1150FMregistered radio stations in the country.
TheArgentine televisionindustry is large, diverse and popular across Latin America, with many productions andTV formatshaving been exported abroad. Since 1999 Argentines enjoy the highest availability of cable and satellite television in Latin America,as of 2014totaling 87.4% of the country's households, a rate similar to those in the United States, Canada and Europe.
By 2011Argentina also had the highest coverage of networked telecommunications among Latin American powers: about 67% of its population had internet access and the ratio of mobile phone subscriptions to population was 137.2%.
Besides many of the pasta, sausage and dessert dishes common to continental Europe, Argentines enjoy a wide variety of Indigenous andCriollocreations, includingempanadas(a small stuffed pastry),locro(a mixture of corn, beans, meat, bacon, onion, and gourd),humitaandmate.In various localities of Argentina, this dish is consumed as abeefmelt.
The country has the highest consumption ofred meatin the world,traditionally prepared asasado, the Argentine barbecue. It is made with various types of meats, often includingchorizo,sweetbread,chitterlings, andblood sausage.
Common desserts includefacturas(Viennese-stylepastry),cakesandpancakesfilled withdulce de leche(a sort of milkcarameljam),alfajores(shortbread cookies sandwiched together with chocolate,dulce de lecheor a fruit paste), andtortas fritas(fried cakes)
Argentine wine, one of the world's finest,is an integral part of the local menu.Malbec,Torrontés,Cabernet Sauvignon,SyrahandChardonnayare some of the most sought-aftervarieties.
Patois thenational sport,an ancient horseback game locally originated in the early 1600s and predecessor ofhorseball.
The most popular sport isfootball. Along withBrazil,GermanyandFrance, themen's national teamis the only one to have won each of theWorld Cup(in1978,1986and2022),Confederations Cup, and theOlympic gold. They have also won 16Copas América, 7Pan American Gold Medalsand many other trophies.Alfredo Di Stéfano,Diego MaradonaandLionel Messiare widely considered to be among the best players in the game's history.
The country'swomen's field hockey teamLas Leonas, is one of the world's most successful with fourOlympic medals, twoWorld Cups, aWorld Leagueand sevenChampions Trophy.Luciana Aymaris recognized as the best female player in the history of the sport,being the only player to have received theFIH Player of the Year Awardeight times.
Basketballis a very popular sport. Themen's national teamis the only one in theFIBA Americaszone that has won the quintuplet crown:World Championship,Olympic Gold Medal,Diamond Ball,Americas Championship, andPan American Gold Medal. It has also conquered 13South American Championships, and many other tournaments.Emanuel Ginóbili,Luis Scola,Andrés Nocioni,Fabricio Oberto,Pablo Prigioni,Carlos DelfinoandJuan Ignacio Sánchezare a few of the country's most acclaimed players, all of them part of theNBA.Argentina hosted theBasketball World Cupin 1950 and 1990.
Rugbyis another popular sport in Argentina. As of 2017, themen's national team, known as 'Los Pumas' has competed at theRugby World Cupeach time it has been held, achieving their highest-ever result in2007when they came third. Since2012, the Los Pumas have competed againstAustralia,New Zealand&South AfricainThe Rugby Championship, the premier international Rugby competition in the Southern Hemisphere. Since 2009 thesecondary men's national teamknown as the 'Jaguares' has competed against theUS,Canada, andUruguayfirst teams in theAmericas Rugby Championship, which Los Jaguares have won six out of eight times it has taken place.
Argentina has produced some of the most formidable champions forboxing, includingCarlos Monzón, the bestmiddleweightin history;Pascual Pérez, one of the most decoratedflyweightboxers of all times;Horacio Accavallo, the formerWBAandWBCworld flyweight champion;Víctor Galíndez, as of 2009, record holder for consecutive worldlight heavyweighttitle defences andNicolino Locche, nicknamed "The Untouchable" for his masterful defence; they are all inductees into theInternational Boxing Hall of Fame.
Tennishas been quite popular among people of all ages.Guillermo Vilasis the greatest Latin American player of theOpen Era,whileGabriela Sabatiniis the most accomplished Argentine female player of all time—having reached number 3 in theWTA ranking,are both inductees into theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame.Argentina has won theWorld Team Cupfour times, in 1980, 2002,2007and2010and has reached the semifinals of theDavis Cup7 times in the last 10 years, losing the finals against Russia in2006and Spain in2008and2011; the Argentine team also played the final in1981, where they lost against the United States. The national squad won the2016 Davis Cup.
Argentina reigns undisputed inpolo, having won more international championships than any other country and been seldom beaten since the 1930s.TheArgentine Polo Championshipis the sport's most important international team trophy. The country is home to most of the world's top players, among themAdolfo Cambiaso, the best in Polo history.
Historically, Argentina has had a strong showing withinauto racing.Juan Manuel Fangiowas a five-timeFormula Oneworld champion under four different teams, winning 102 of his 184 international races, and is widely ranked as the greatest driver of all time.Other distinguished racers wereOscar Alfredo Gálvez,Juan Gálvez,José Froilán GonzálezandCarlos Reutemann.
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