With a population of almost 3 million people, Buenos Aires is the largest city in Argentina and one of the largest in South
America. Its population consists primarily of Argentinians of Spanish and Italian descent, although there are sizable communities
of people with Arab, Jewish, Armenian, and Korean origins. A small percentage are of indigenous descent. The majority of
inhabitants are Roman Catholic, and Spanish is the primary language.
The city of Buenos Aires proper is the Federal Capital of Argentina, and has been granted special status as Buenos
Aires Autonomous City. The suburbs which make up Greater Buenos Aires or Gran Buenos Aires belong to Buenos
Aires Province, but the city of Buenos Aires does not.
Economy
Buenos Aires is the financial, industrial, commercial, and social centre of Argentina. Buenos Aires has one of the busiest
ports in the world, and an enormous inland river system connecting it to the majority of Argentina as well as with Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay. As a result, it serves as the distribution hub for a vast area of the south-eastern region of the
continent. Due to the enormous economic significance of this port, inhabitants of Buenos Aires nickname themselves
porteños (people of the port).
To the west of Buenos Aires is the Pampa, the most productive agricultural region of
Argentina. As a result meat, dairy, grain, tobacco, wool and hide products are all processed or manufactured in Buenos Aires.
Other leading industries are automobile manufacturing, oil refining, metalworking, machine building, and the production of
textiles, chemicals, paper, clothing, beverages.
History
Spaniard seaman Pedro de Solís discovered the La Plata River in 1516. The site of the
present city was founded on February 2, 1536 by a Spanish gold-seeking expedition under Pedro de Mendoza. However, attacks by indigenous peoples forced the settlers away and in
1541 the site was abandoned. A second (and permanent) settlement was established in
1580 by Juan de Garay, after he departed Asunción. From its earliest
days the success of Buenos Aires depended on trade, although this trade was initially illegal. The Spanish administration of the
17th and 18th centuries insisted that any and all trade to Europe initially pass through Lima, Peru so that taxes could be collected. This extravagant deviation frustrated the traders of Buenos Aires
and a thriving contraband industry developed. Unsurprisingly, this also instilled a deep resentment of the Spanish authority
within the inhabitants of Buenos Aires.
Sensing this instability, Charles III of Spain
progressively eased the trade restrictions and finally declared Buenos Aires to be an open port in the late 1700s. These placating actions did not have the desired effect however, and the porteños became even
more desirous of independence from Spain. Ultimately, on May 25, 1810, and after a week of mostly pacific deliberations, the citizens of Buenos Aires successfully expelled the
Viceroy from Spain and established a provincial government (this date is now celebrated as a national holiday). On July 9, 1816 a congress gathered in Tucuman declared the independence from Spain, which did not officially recognised it until
1862.
1888 German map of Buenos Aires
Railroad construction during the 19th century only increased the economic power of Buenos Aires as raw materials flowed into
its factories. By the 1920s Buenos Aires was a favoured destination for immigrants from
Europe, and extensive shanty towns developed in and around the city's industrial areas, leading to extensive social problems. An
aggressive campaign of slum elimination, combined with the development of a effective public transport system in the 1970s and 1980s alleviated many of these problems. Since
the 1970s Argentina and Buenos Aires has been famous for the desaparecidos, of which the signs could be seen in the Plaza de Mayo (next to the Casa Rosada) where the mothers
of these desaparecidos used to protest.
In 1902 the Teatro Opera started organizing balls that included the tango. The city holds an annual "Tango Day" each December
11. A wonderful place to know is San Telmo. It is great place to see the real
tango on the streets. On the other hand, those who are inclined to opera and ballet might find of interest a visit to the
Colón Theater.
On February 25, 1951 the first
Pan American Games were held here.
On March 17, 1992 a suicide car-bomb
exploded in the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires killing 29 and injuring 242.
An explosion on July 18, 1994 destroyed a
building housing several Jewish organizations killing 96 and injuring many more.
Buenos Aires has an international airport called Ministro Pistarini International Airport (located in the nearby city of Ezeiza),
and a local airport called Aeroparque Jorge
Newbery.
Barrios
The city is divided in 47 barrios.
See: List of Buenos Aires Barrios
See also: Cities of the world, List of national capitals
External link
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