King Momo or King Momos or King Momus , ( Rei Momo in Portuguese or Rey Momo in Spanish ) ‘’’ Rex Momus’’’ in Latin is considered the king of Carnivals in numerous Latin American festivities, mainly in Brazil and Colombia . His appearance signifies the beginning of the Carnival festivities. Each carnival has its own King Momo, who is often given the key to the city . Traditionally, a tall, fat man is chosen to fulfill the role because the original King Momo was of that physical stature.
112-397: In Argentina and Uruguay , Rey Momo is more often represented by a big, sometimes monumental, doll made of papier-mâché over a wooden or wire structure. In these cases it is carried in a tow or at the top of a truck, and presides the carnival with a royal court of dancers. While a doll, it conserves its traditional features: flamboyant and colorful clothing, a smiling or joyful face and
224-541: A better life, among other reasons. The main immigration sources were from Europe, the countries from the Near and Middle East, Russia and Japan. In fact, the immigration torrent was so strong that Argentina eventually received the second-largest number of immigrants in the world, second only to the US and ahead of such immigrant receptor countries such as Canada, Brazil, Australia, etc. Most of these European immigrants settled in
336-669: A clandestine organization. José López Rega organized the Argentine Anticommunist Alliance (AAA) to fight against them and the People'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 attempt to start a rural insurgence in Tucumán province. Isabel Perón
448-411: A colonial Spanish grid style , centered on a plaza overlooked by a cathedral and important government buildings. Many still retain this general layout, known as a damero , meaning checkerboard, since it is based on a pattern of square blocks. The city of La Plata, designed at the end of the 19th century by Pedro Benoit , combines the checkerboard layout with added diagonal avenues at fixed intervals, and
560-684: 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, and bombed the Plaza de Mayo in 1955. Perón survived the attack, but a few months later, during the Liberating Revolution coup, he was deposed and went into exile in Spain. The new head of State, Pedro Eugenio Aramburu , proscribed Peronism and banned
672-463: 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 the de facto head of state . Isabel Perón served as President of Argentina from 1974 until 1976, when she was ousted by
784-551: 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 , and factory occupations took place within
896-747: A military coup d'état led by General Arturo Rawson toppled the democratically elected government of Ramón Castillo . Under pressure from the United States, later Argentina declared war on the Axis Powers (on 27 March 1945, roughly a month before the end of World War II in Europe ). During the Rawson dictatorship a relatively unknown military colonel named Juan Perón was named head of the Labour Department. Perón quickly managed to climb
1008-821: A million people each. The population is unequally distributed amongst the provinces, with 61% living in the Pampa region (21% of the total area), including 17.5 million people in Buenos Aires Province , 4 million in Córdoba Province , and over 3 million each in Santa Fe Province and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires . Eight other provinces each have over one million people: Mendoza, Tucumán, Salta, Entre Ríos, Misiones, Corrientes, Chaco, and Santiago del Estero. Tucumán
1120-480: 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. In English , the country was traditionally called "the Argentine", mimicking the typical Spanish usage la Argentina and perhaps resulting from a mistaken shortening of the fuller name 'Argentine Republic'. 'The Argentine' fell out of fashion during
1232-576: A program called Patria Grande ("Greater Homeland") to encourage illegal immigrants to regularize their status; so far over 670,000 applications have been processed under the program. The official language of Argentina is Spanish, and it is spoken by practically the entire population in several different accents. The most common variation of Spanish in Argentina is the Rioplatense Spanish (Spanish: castellano rioplatense ), and it
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#17327760158181344-536: A prominent belly. It used to be burnt at the end of the festivities, also being its climax, but this practice is being discouraged in recent times for safety reasons. Also in the former Portuguese-ruled Goa , India, at the Carnival Parade, a person is selected to play the part of King Momo. Sixtus Eric Dias from Candolim was selected in 2021. King Momus derives from the Greek god Momus ( μῶμος ) . Probably
1456-618: A proposal known as the Inca plan of 1816, which proposed that the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (Present Argentina) should be a monarchy, led by a descendant of the Inca . Juan Bautista Túpac Amaru (half-brother of Túpac Amaru II ) was proposed as monarch. Some examples of those who supported this proposal were Manuel Belgrano , José de San Martín and Martín Miguel de Güemes . The Congress of Tucumán finally decided to reject
1568-477: A result of immigration from the Middle East, mostly from Syria and Lebanon. Standard German is spoken by around 500,000 Argentines of German ancestry, though the number may be as high as 3,800,000 according to some sources. German is the third or fourth most spoken language in Argentina. There is a prosperous community of Argentine Welsh -speakers of approximately 25,000 in the province of Chubut , in
1680-613: A second term . With the economy beginning to decline in 1995, and with increasing unemployment and recession, the UCR, led by Fernando de la Rúa , returned to the presidency in the 1999 elections . De la Rúa left Menem's economic plan in effect despite the worsening crisis, which led to growing social discontent. Massive capital flight from the country was responded to with a freezing of bank accounts , generating further turmoil. The December 2001 riots forced him to resign. Congress appointed Eduardo Duhalde as acting president, who revoked
1792-467: A single month. Even though far-left terrorist organisations had suspended their armed struggle, their joining with the participatory democracy process 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
1904-558: A slower rate because of its steadily declining birth rate. Argentina's fertility decline began earlier than in the rest of Latin America, occurring most rapidly between the early 20th century and the 1930s and then becoming more gradual. Life expectancy has been improving, most notably among the young and the poor. Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review. Demographic statistics according to
2016-414: 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 the protectionist economic 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 Argentine intelligentsia ,
2128-550: Is plateado and prateado , although argento for 'silver' and argentado for 'covered in silver' exist in Spanish. Argentina was first associated with the silver mountains legend , widespread among the first European explorers of the La Plata Basin . The first written use of the name in Spanish can be traced to La Argentina , a 1602 poem by Martín del Barco Centenera describing the region. Although "Argentina"
2240-595: Is 16.5 people per square kilometer - well below the world average of 62 people. Argentina's population growth rate in 2020 was estimated to be 0.35% annually, with a birth rate of 11.8 per 1,000 inhabitants and a mortality rate of 8.3 per 1,000 inhabitants. The proportion of people under 15, at 22%, is somewhat below the world average (25%), and the cohort of people 65 and older is relatively high, at 12%. The percentage of senior citizens in Argentina has long been second only to Uruguay in Latin America and well above
2352-466: Is a demography of Argentina including population density , ethnicity , economic status and other aspects of the population. As of the 2022 census [ INDEC ] , Argentina had a population of 46,044,703 - a 15.3% increase from the 40,117,096 counted in the 2010 census [ INDEC ] . Argentina ranks third in South America in total population and 33rd globally. The population density
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#17327760158182464-476: Is a regional power , and retains its historic status as a middle power in international affairs. A major non-NATO ally of the United States, Argentina is a developing country with the second-highest HDI (human development index) in Latin America after Chile . It maintains the second-largest economy in South America, and is a member of G-15 and G20 . Argentina is also a founding member of
2576-532: Is a country in the southern half of South America . Argentina covers an area of 2,780,400 km (1,073,500 sq mi), making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil , the fourth-largest country in the Americas , and the eighth-largest country in the world. It shares the bulk of the Southern Cone with Chile to the west, and is also bordered by Bolivia and Paraguay to
2688-516: Is already high, but the 'sh' sound increases the intelligibility between both languages even more. Many Argentines also speak other European languages (Italian, German, Portuguese, French, Welsh , Swedish and Croatian , as examples) due to the vast number of immigrants from Europe that came to Argentina. English language is a required subject in many schools, and there are also many private English-teaching academies and institutions. Young people have become accustomed to English through movies and
2800-597: Is so named because it evolved in the central areas around the Río de la Plata basin. Its distinctive feature is widespread voseo , the use of the pronoun vos instead of tú for the second person singular . Additionally, the Argentinian accent sounds identical to Portuguese in the words that begin with 'll' or 'yo', and all the words in Portuguese that begin with 'ch'. For example, the following sentence English: What
2912-459: Is the most densely populated (with 75 inhabitants/km , the only Argentine province more densely populated than the world average), while the southern province of Santa Cruz has just 1.4 inhabitant/km . In the mid-19th century, a large wave of immigration started to arrive to Argentina due to new constitutional policies that encouraged immigration, and issues in the countries the immigrants came from such as wars, poverty, hunger, famines, pursuit of
3024-469: Is without prejudice that more than half of the population has at least one indigenous ancestor, although in most cases family memory lost that origin. Since 2013, November 8 has been celebrated as the National Day of Afro-Argentines and African Culture. The date was chosen to commemorate the recorded date for the death of María Remedios del Valle , a rabona and guerrilla fighter , who served with
3136-508: Is your name? Portuguese: como se chama? Spanish: Como se llama? - 'chama' & 'llama' are pronounced as though they were spelled "Shama"in both Argentinian Spanish and Portuguese. Moreover, the sound shift of all of the words in Spanish that begin with "ll" or 'y' but sound like 'sh' i.e., 'llorar' 'llama, 'llegar' & 'yo'. In Portuguese the words that begin with 'ch' always sound like 'sh'. There are many more words like these shown above. The mutual intelligibility between Spanish and Portuguese
3248-632: The Cordobazo and the Rosariazo . The terrorist guerrilla organization Montoneros kidnapped and executed Aramburu. The newly chosen head of government, Alejandro Agustín Lanusse , seeking to ease the growing political pressure, allowed Héctor José Cámpora to become the Peronist candidate instead of Perón. Cámpora won the March 1973 election , issued pardons for condemned guerrilla members, and then secured Perón's return from his exile in Spain. On
3360-517: The Army of the North in the war of Independence . The black population in Argentina declined since the middle 19th century from 15% of the total population in 1857 (Blacks and Mulatto people), to less than 0.5% at present (mainly mulattoes and immigrants from Cape Verde ). Afro-Argentines were up to a third of the population during colonial times ; most were slaves brought from Africa to work for
3472-624: The Bombing of Plaza de Mayo in 1955. The Trelew massacre of 1972, the actions of the Argentine Anticommunist Alliance commencing in 1973, and Isabel Perón 's "annihilation decrees" against left-wing guerrillas during Operativo 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:
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3584-580: The CIA World Factbook , unless otherwise indicated. European (mostly Spanish and Italian descent) and Mestizo (mixed European and Amerindian ancestry), 97.2% Amerindian, 2.4% African, 0.4% (2010 est.) Spanish (official), Italian, Portuguese, English, German, French, indigenous (Mapudungun, Quechua) Roman Catholicism 66%, Protestantism 10%, No Religion 21%, Other 3% definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2016 est.) Ethno-racial groups in Argentina (2022 census) In colonial times,
3696-738: The Centralists and the Federalists —a move that would define Argentina's first decades of independence. The Assembly of the Year XIII appointed Gervasio Antonio de Posadas as Argentina's first Supreme Director . On 9 July 1816, the Congress of Tucumán formalized the Declaration of Independence , which is now celebrated as Independence Day, a national holiday. One year later General Martín Miguel de Güemes stopped royalists on
3808-709: The Charrúa , Minuane and Guaraní in the northeast, with slash and burn semisedentary existence; the advanced Diaguita sedentary trading culture in the northwest, which was conquered by the Inca Empire around 1480; the Toconoté and Hênîa and Kâmîare in the country's centre, and the Huarpe in the centre-west, a culture that raised llama cattle and was strongly influenced by the Incas. Europeans first arrived in
3920-833: The Falkland Islands , South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands , the Southern Patagonian Ice Field , and a part of Antarctica . The earliest recorded human presence in modern-day Argentina dates back to the Paleolithic period. The Inca Empire expanded to the northwest of the country in Pre-Columbian times. The country has its roots in Spanish colonization of the region during the 16th century. Argentina rose as
4032-521: The Laborioust candidate. The Labour Party (later renamed Justicialist Party ), the most powerful and influential party in Argentine history, came into power with the rise of Juan Perón to the presidency in 1946. He nationalized strategic industries and services, improved wages and working conditions, paid the full external debt and claimed he achieved nearly full employment . He pushed Congress to enact women's suffrage in 1947, and developed
4144-508: The Macri Government introduced neoliberal austerity measures intended to tackle inflation and 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 to Alberto Fernández ,
4256-736: The Northern Basque Country ), Germany , Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden , Norway, Greece , Portugal, Finland, Russia and the United Kingdom. The Welsh settlement in Patagonia , known as Y Wladfa , began in 1865; mainly along the coast of Chubut Province . In addition to the main colony in Chubut, a smaller colony was set up in Santa Fe and another group settled at Coronel Suárez , southern Buenos Aires Province . Of
4368-498: The Patagonia region, who descend from 19th century immigrants . Religion in Argentina (2021) The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion, but until 1994 the President and Vice President had to be Catholic. The society, culture , and politics of Argentina are deeply imbued with Roman Catholicism. Estimates for the number of Roman Catholics vary from 70% of the population, to as much as 90%. The CIA Factbook lists 92% of
4480-462: The Southern Cone . The Dirty War involved state terrorism in 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 the neoliberal economic policies of the regime. Victims of
4592-743: The United Nations , World Bank , World Trade Organization , Mercosur , Community of Latin American and Caribbean States and the Organization of Ibero-American States . The description of the region by the word Argentina has been found on a Venetian map in 1536. In English, the name Argentina comes from the Spanish language ; however, the naming itself is not Spanish, but Italian . Argentina ( masculine argentino ) means in Italian '(made) of silver, silver coloured', derived from
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4704-670: The absolutist monarchy that ruled the country. As in the rest of Spanish America, the overthrow of Ferdinand VII during the Peninsular War created great concern. Beginning a process from which Argentina was to emerge as successor state to the Viceroyalty, the 1810 May Revolution replaced the viceroy Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros with the First Junta , a new government in Buenos Aires made up from locals. In
4816-543: The great European immigration wave to Argentina (1850–1955), with a great majority of these immigrants coming from diverse European countries, particularly Italy and Spain. Genetic ancestry of the average Argentine gene pool according to Caputo et al. (2021) using X-DIPs (matrilineal). Genetic ancestry of the Argentine gene pool according to Hoburguer et al. (2015) According to the data of INDEC 's Complementary Survey of Indigenous Peoples (ECPI) 2004–2005, 600,000 officially recognized indigenous people (about 1.4% of
4928-520: The neo-Keynesian economic policies laid by Duhalde, Kirchner ended the economic crisis attaining significant fiscal and trade surpluses, and rapid GDP growth. Under his administration, Argentina restructured its defaulted debt with an unprecedented discount of about 70% on most bonds, paid off debts with the International Monetary Fund , purged the military of officers with dubious human rights records, nullified and voided
5040-529: The 1916 election . He enacted social and economic reforms and extended assistance to small farms and businesses. Argentina stayed neutral during World War I . The second administration of Yrigoyen faced an economic crisis, precipitated by the Great Depression . In 1930, Yrigoyen was ousted from power by the military led by José Félix Uriburu . Although Argentina remained among the fifteen richest countries until mid-century, this coup d'état marks
5152-600: The 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects the total population was 45,276,780 in 2021 - double the number in 1966 (for a 1.27% average annual growth rate in that period). The population below the age of 15 in 2022 was 22%, 66% was between 15 and 64, while 12% was 65 or older. The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates of vital statistics of Argentina. Argentina's population continues to grow but at
5264-488: The 50,000 Patagonians of Welsh descent, about 5,000 are Welsh speakers . The community is centered on the cities of Gaiman , Trelew and Trevelin . According to the INDEC 1,531,940 of the Argentine resident population in 2001 were born outside Argentina, representing 4.22% of the total Argentine resident population. In 2010, 1,805,957 of the Argentine resident population were born outside Argentina, representing 4.50% of
5376-709: The Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, Russia, Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Romania, Bulgaria, Armenia, Greece, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. Italian population in Argentina arrived mainly from the northern Italian regions varying between Piedmont , Veneto and Lombardy , later from Campania and Calabria ; Spanish immigrants were mainly Galicians and Basques . Thousands of immigrants also came from France (notably Béarn and
5488-543: 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 Bignone replaced Galtieri and began to organize the transition to democratic governance. Raúl Alfonsín won the 1983 elections campaigning for
5600-540: The 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, senator Cristina Fernández de Kirchner , who was elected in 2007 and reelected in 2011 . Fernández de Kirchner's administration established positive foreign relations with countries such as Venezuela, Iran, and Cuba, while at
5712-677: The Inca plan, creating instead a republican, centralist state. The 1820 Battle of Cepeda , fought between the Centralists and the Federalists, resulted in the end of the Supreme Director rule . In 1826 Buenos Aires enacted another centralist constitution , with Bernardino Rivadavia being appointed as the first president of the country. However, the interior provinces soon rose against him, forced his resignation and discarded
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#17327760158185824-485: The Internet, and knowledge of the language is also required in most jobs, so most middle-class children and teenagers now speak, read and/or understand it with various degrees of proficiency. According to an official cultural consumption survey conducted in 2006, 42.3% of Argentines claim to speak some English (though only 15.4% of those claimed to have a high level of English comprehension). There are sources of around one million Levantine Arabic speakers in Argentina, as
5936-508: The Justicialist Party candidate. President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner took office in December 2019, just months before the COVID-19 pandemic hit Argentina and among accusations of corruption , bribery and misuse of public funds during Nestor and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's presidencies . On 14 November 2021, the center-left coalition of Argentina's ruling Peronist party, Frente de Todos (Front for Everyone), lost its majority in Congress, for
6048-490: The Justicialist Party nominee. Perón won the election with his wife Isabel Perón as 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 Guevarist ERP , leftist Peronist Montoneros , and the state-backed far-right Triple A . After a series of heart attacks and signs of pneumonia in 1974, Perón's health deteriorated quickly. He suffered
6160-402: The Latin argentum for silver. In Italian, the adjective or the proper noun is often used in an autonomous way as a substantive and replaces it and it is said l'Argentina . The name Argentina was probably first given by the Venetian and Genoese navigators, such as Giovanni Caboto . In Spanish and Portuguese, the words for 'silver' are respectively plata and prata and '(made) of silver'
6272-472: The Peronist Carlos Menem won the 1989 election . Soon after, riots forced Alfonsín to an early resignation . Menem embraced and enacted neoliberal policies: a fixed exchange rate , business deregulation , privatizations , and the dismantling of protectionist barriers normalized the economy in the short term. He pardoned the officers who had been sentenced during Alfonsín's government. The 1994 Constitutional Amendment allowed Menem to be elected for
6384-439: The United States government during the Johnson , Nixon , Ford , Carter , and Reagan administrations. The exact chronology of the repression is 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 of state-sponsored terrorism against Peronism and the left can be traced back even further to
6496-562: The United States'—led to a near-reinvention of Argentine society and economy that by 1908 had placed the country as the seventh wealthiest developed nation in the world. Driven by this immigration wave and decreasing mortality, the Argentine population grew fivefold and the economy 15-fold: from 1870 to 1910, Argentina's wheat exports 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
6608-398: 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, the Sun of May
6720-400: 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 the Sociedad Rural Argentina , financiers of the expeditions. The conquest of Chaco lasted up to the end of the century, since its full ownership of
6832-469: The cities which offered jobs, education and other opportunities enabling them to enter the middle class. Many also settled in the growing small towns along the expanding railway system and since the 1930s many rural workers have moved to the big cities. Urban areas reflect the influence of European immigration, and most of the larger ones feature boulevards and diagonal avenues inspired by the redevelopment of Paris . Argentine cities were originally built in
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#17327760158186944-414: The city of Buenos Aires, but foreigners were only 2% in the provinces of Catamarca and La Rioja (North West region). Strikingly, at those times, the national population doubled every two decades. This belief is endured in the popular saying "los argentinos descienden de los barcos" (Argentines descend from the ships). Therefore, most Argentines are descended from the 19th- and 20th-century immigrants of
7056-444: The constitution. Centralists and Federalists resumed the civil war; the latter prevailed and formed the Argentine Confederation in 1831, led by Juan Manuel de Rosas . During his regime he faced a French blockade (1838–1840), the War of the Confederation (1836–1839), and an Anglo-French blockade (1845–1850), but remained undefeated and prevented further loss of national territory. His trade restriction policies, however, angered
7168-477: The country is Catholic, but only 20% are practicing regularly or weekly at a church service. The Jewish population is about 300,000 (around 0.75% of the population), the community numbered about 400,000 after World War II, but the appeal of Israel and economic and cultural pressures at home led many to leave; recent instability in Israel has resulted in a modest reversal of the trend since 2003. Muslim Argentines number about 500,000–600,000, or approximately 1.5% of
7280-723: The country was scarcely populated following its independence, the impact of the immigration to Argentina becomes evident. In the last national census, based on self-identification, 952,032 Argentines (2.4% of the population) declared to be Amerindians. Most of the 6.2 million European immigrants arriving between 1850 and 1950, regardless of origin, settled in several regions of the country. Due to this large-scale European immigration, Argentina's population more than doubled. The majority of these European immigrants came from Spain and Italy. Thousands of immigrants also came from France, Germany, England, Portugal, Brazil, Switzerland, Wales, Scotland, Poland, Albania, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia,
7392-437: 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-called Conquest of the Desert occurred, with the purpose of tripling the Argentine territory by means of the constant confrontations between natives and Criollos in
7504-456: The criollos. The 1813 Assembly abolished slavery and led to the Freedom of Wombs Law of 1813, which automatically freed slaves' children at birth. Many Afro-Argentines contributed to the independence of Argentina such as María Remedios del Valle who is known as "La Madre de la Patria" (mother of the fatherland in English) and Sgt. Juan Bautista Cabral . Also there is a debate, among the historians, as to whether or not Bernardino Rivadavia ,
7616-407: The day Perón returned to Argentina, the clash between Peronist internal factions— right-wing union leaders and left-wing youth from the Montoneros—resulted in the Ezeiza Massacre . Overwhelmed by political violence, Cámpora resigned and Perón won the following September 1973 election with his third wife Isabel as vice-president. He expelled Montoneros from the party and they became once again
7728-462: The death of President Juan Perón in 1974, his widow and vice president, Isabel Perón , ascended to the presidency, before being overthrown in 1976 . The following military junta , which was supported by the United States , persecuted and murdered thousands of political critics, activists, and leftists in the Dirty War , a period of state terrorism and civil unrest that lasted until the election of Raúl Alfonsín as president in 1983 . Argentina
7840-402: The development of pottery , such as the Selk'nam and Yaghan in the extreme south. The second group are advanced hunters and food gatherers which include the Puelche , Querandí and Serranos in the centre-east; and the Tehuelche in the south—all of them conquered by the Mapuche spreading from Chile —and the Kom and Wichi in the north. The last group are farmers with pottery, such as
7952-420: The ethnic composition of Argentina was the result of the interaction of the pre-Columbian indigenous population with a colonizing population of Spanish origin and with sub-Saharan African slaves. Before the middle 19th century, the ethnic make up of Argentina was very similar to that of other countries of Latin America . Between 1857 and 1950 Argentina was the country with the second biggest immigration wave in
8064-404: The first ballotage in Argentina's history, beating Front for Victory candidate Daniel Scioli and becoming president-elect. Macri was the first democratically elected non- peronist president 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,
8176-600: The first clashes of the Independence War the Junta crushed a royalist counter-revolution in Córdoba , but failed to overcome those of the Banda Oriental , Upper Peru and Paraguay , which later became independent states. The French-Argentine Hippolyte Bouchard then brought his fleet to wage war against Spain overseas and attacked Spanish California , Spanish Peru and Spanish Philippines . He secured
8288-649: The first president of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (Present Argentina) had African ancestors. As with other areas of new settlement such as Canada , Australia , the United States , Brazil , and New Zealand , Argentina is considered a country of immigrants. When it is considered that Argentina was second only to the United States (27 million of immigrants) in the number of immigrants received, even ahead of such other areas of new settlement like Canada, Brazil and Australia; and that
8400-492: The first time in almost 40 years, in midterm legislative elections . The election victory of the center-right coalition, Juntos por el Cambio (Together for Change) limited President Alberto Fernandez's 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 every initiative he sends to
8512-424: 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 two piqueteros by the police caused political unrest, prompting Duhalde to move elections forward. Néstor Kirchner was elected as the new president . On 26 May 2003, he was sworn in. Boosting
8624-498: The government after elected labour movement officials were forcefully replaced by Peronist puppets from the Peronist 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. Perón managed to get re-elected in 1951 . His wife Eva Perón , who played
8736-511: The interior provinces and in 1852 Justo José de Urquiza , another powerful caudillo , beat him out of power . As the new president of the Confederation, Urquiza enacted the liberal and federal 1853 Constitution. Buenos Aires seceded but was forced back into the Confederation after being defeated in the 1859 Battle of Cepeda . Overpowering Urquiza in the 1861 Battle of Pavón , Bartolomé Mitre secured Buenos Aires' predominance and
8848-610: 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 of South Georgia and, on 2 April, Argentina invaded
8960-467: The legislature. In April 2023, President Alberto Fernandez announced that he will not seek re-election in the next presidential election . The 19 November 2023 election run-off vote ended in a win for libertarian outsider Javier Milei with close to 56% of the vote against 44% of the ruling coalition candidate Sergio Massa . On 10 December 2023, Javier Milei was sworn in as the new president of Argentina. Demographics of Argentina This
9072-579: 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 the Paleolithic period, with further traces in the Mesolithic and Neolithic . 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
9184-418: 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
9296-408: 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 of Operation Condor , which included the participation of other right-wing dictatorships in
9408-625: The most famous of the King Momos are found in Rio de Janeiro where the tradition of a presiding king goes back to 1933. [1] : Waldemar Esteves da Cunha (born 1920 - died 2013) was King Momo of Santos from 1950 to 1956 and from 1958 to 1990, and until he was 92 and pensioned, he was the oldest Momo in Brazil . Argentina Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic ,
9520-507: The national economic system only took place when the mere extraction of wood and tannin was replaced by the production of cotton . The Argentine government considered indigenous people as inferior beings, without the same rights as Criollos and Europeans. In 1912, President Roque Sáenz Peña enacted universal and secret male suffrage , which allowed Hipólito Yrigoyen , leader of the Radical Civic Union (or UCR), to win
9632-572: The north, Brazil to the northeast, Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south. Argentina is a federal state subdivided into twenty-three provinces , and one autonomous city , which is the federal capital and largest city of the nation, Buenos Aires . The provinces and the capital have their own constitutions, but exist under a federal system . Argentina claims sovereignty over
9744-500: The north, and General José de San Martín . He joined Bernardo O'Higgins and they led a combined army across the Andes and secured the independence of Chile; then it was sent by O'Higgins orders to the Spanish stronghold of Lima and proclaimed the independence of Peru . In 1819 Buenos Aires enacted a centralist constitution that was soon abrogated by federalists. Some of the most important figures of Argentine independence made
9856-448: The party from any future elections. Arturo Frondizi from the UCR won the 1958 general election . He encouraged investment to achieve energetic and industrial self-sufficiency, reversed a chronic trade deficit and 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
9968-417: The political ladder, being named Minister of Defence by 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 would later become president after a landslide victory over the UCR in the 1946 general election as
10080-414: The political turmoil, Senate leader José María Guido reacted swiftly and applied anti- power vacuum legislation, ascending to the presidency himself; elections were repealed and Peronism was prohibited once again. Arturo Illia was elected in 1963 and led an increase in prosperity across the board; however he was overthrown in 1966 by another military coup d'état led by General Juan Carlos Onganía in
10192-622: The prosecution of those responsible for human rights violations during the Proceso : the Trial of the Juntas and other martial courts sentenced all the coup's leaders but, under military pressure, he also enacted the Full Stop and Due Obedience laws, which halted prosecutions further down the chain of command . The worsening economic crisis and hyperinflation reduced his popular support and
10304-557: The region with the 1502 voyage of Amerigo Vespucci . The Spanish navigators Juan Díaz de Solís and Sebastian Cabot visited the territory that is now Argentina in 1516 and 1526, respectively. In 1536 Pedro de Mendoza founded the small settlement of Buenos Aires , which was abandoned in 1541. Further colonization efforts came from Paraguay —establishing the Governorate of the Río de la Plata — Peru and Chile. Francisco de Aguirre founded Santiago del Estero in 1553. Londres
10416-556: The same time relations with the United States and the United Kingdom became increasingly strained. By 2015, the Argentine GDP grew by 2.7% and real incomes had risen over 50% since the post-Menem era. Despite these economic gains and increased renewable energy production and subsidies, the overall economy had been sluggish since 2011. On 22 November 2015, after a tie in the first round of presidential elections on 25 October , center-right coalition candidate Mauricio Macri won
10528-512: The self-proclaimed Argentine Revolution , creating a new military government that sought to rule indefinitely. Following several years of military rule, Alejandro Agustín Lanusse was appointed president by the military junta in 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 ,
10640-563: The silver and gold mines in Bolivia and Peru, and as such it became part of the Viceroyalty of Peru until the creation of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776 with Buenos Aires as its capital. Buenos Aires repelled two ill-fated British invasions in 1806 and 1807. The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment and the example of the first Atlantic Revolutions generated criticism of
10752-434: The start of the steady economic and social decline that pushed the country back into underdevelopment. Uriburu ruled for two years; then Agustín Pedro Justo was elected in a fraudulent election , and signed a controversial treaty with the United Kingdom . Argentina stayed neutral during World War II , a decision that had full British support but was rejected by the United States after the attack on Pearl Harbor . In 1943
10864-503: The successor state of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata , a Spanish overseas viceroyalty founded in 1776. The declaration and fight for independence (1810–1818) was followed by an extended civil war that lasted until 1861, culminating in the country's reorganization as a federation . The country thereafter enjoyed relative peace and stability, with several waves of European immigration , mainly Italians and Spaniards , influencing its culture and demography . Following
10976-619: The table. The number of births in 2021 (529,794) was 32% below the record set in 2014, while the number of deaths (436,799) was the highest ever recorded - though as the population of Argentina showed a five-fold increase during the past century, the birth rate in 2021 (11.6) was a record low while the death rate (9.5) rose to its highest since 1947 due to the COVID-19 pandemic . Birth rates were relatively stable from 1934 through 1980, and after declining stabilized from 1995 to 2015 - before again declining sharply since then. According to
11088-554: The ten largest metropolitan areas accounting for half of the population, and fewer than one in ten living in rural areas. About 3 million people live in Buenos Aires proper, and including suburban Greater Buenos Aires the metropolitan area totals around 14 million - making it one of the 15 largest urban areas in the world. The metropolitan areas of Córdoba and Rosario have around 1.3 million inhabitants each, and six other cities ( Mendoza , Tucumán , La Plata , Mar del Plata , Salta and Santa Fe ) have at least half
11200-541: The total Argentine resident population. As of July 2023, more than 18,500 Russians have come to Argentina after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 . Illegal immigration has been a recent factor in Argentine demographics. Most illegal immigrants come from Bolivia and Paraguay, countries which border Argentina to the north. Smaller numbers arrive from Peru and Ecuador. The Argentine government estimates that 750,000 inhabitants lack official documents and has launched
11312-567: The total population) reside in Argentina. The most numerous of these communities are the Mapuches , who live mostly in the south, the Kollas and Wichís , from the northwest, and the Guaranis and Qom , who live mostly in the northeast. In the census of 2010, 955,032 people self recognized as indigenous or descendants of indigenous peoples, thus representing 2.4% of the national population. This
11424-450: The violence in Argentina alone included an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 left-wing activists and militants, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists , Peronist guerrillas , and alleged sympathizers. Most of the victims were casualties of state terrorism . The opposing guerrillas' victims numbered nearly 500–540 military and police officials and up to 230 civilians. Argentina received technical support and military aid from
11536-413: The world average, which is currently 9.8%. The median age is approximately 32 years, and life expectancy at birth is of 78 years. According to an official cultural consumption survey conducted in 2006, 42.3% of Argentines speak English (though only 15.4% of those claimed to have a high level of English comprehension), 9.3% speak Portuguese and 5.9% speak Italian. Argentina is highly urbanized, with
11648-510: The world's top five exporters. Its railway mileage rose from 503 to 31,104 km (313 to 19,327 mi). Fostered by a new public, compulsory, free and secular education system, literacy quickly increased from 22% to 65%, a level higher than most Latin American nations would reach even fifty years later. Furthermore, real GDP grew so fast that despite the huge immigration influx, per capita income between 1862 and 1920 went from 67% of developed country levels to 100%: In 1865, Argentina
11760-404: The world, at 6.6 million, second only to the United States in the numbers of immigrants received (27 million) and ahead of other areas of new settlement like Canada, Brazil and Australia. However, mass European immigration did not have the same impact in the whole country. According to the 1914 national census, 30% of Argentina's population was foreign-born, including 50% of the people in
11872-591: Was adopted as a symbol by the Filipinos in the Philippine Revolution against Spain. He also secured the diplomatic recognition of Argentina from King Kamehameha I of the Kingdom 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:
11984-578: Was already in common usage by the 18th century, the country was formally named " Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata " by the Spanish Empire , and " United Provinces of the Río de la Plata " after independence. The 1826 constitution included the first use of the name "Argentine Republic" in legal documents. The name "Argentine Confederation" was also commonly used and was formalized in the Argentine Constitution of 1853 . In 1860
12096-413: 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 than Brazil 's. Despite these unique achievements,
12208-404: Was elected as the first president of the reunified country. He was followed by Domingo Faustino Sarmiento and Nicolás Avellaneda ; these three presidencies set up the basis of the modern Argentine State. Starting with Julio Argentino Roca in 1880, ten consecutive federal governments emphasized liberal economic policies . The massive wave of European immigration they promoted—second only to
12320-413: Was founded in 1558; Mendoza , in 1561; San Juan , in 1562; San Miguel de Tucumán , in 1565. Juan de Garay founded Santa Fe in 1573 and the same year Jerónimo Luis de Cabrera set up Córdoba . Garay went further south to re-found Buenos Aires in 1580. San Luis was established in 1596. The Spanish Empire subordinated the economic potential of the Argentine territory to the immediate wealth of
12432-599: Was ousted one year later by a junta of the combined armed forces, led by army general Jorge Rafael Videla . They initiated the National Reorganization Process , often shortened to Proceso . The Proceso shut down Congress, removed the judges on the Supreme Court, banned political parties and unions, and resorted to employing the forced disappearance of suspected guerrilla members including individuals suspected of being associated with
12544-482: Was the first in South America with electric street lighting. Not including claims to the Islas Malvinas ( Falkland Islands ) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands . Sources: Pantelides and National Institute of Statistics and Census of Argentina The table below gives an overview of the number of birth and deaths in Argentina during the past century. Several sources were combined to compile
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