Argentina

Where the name comes from

Argentina comes from Latin argentum, “silver”, through Italian or Spanish; it recalls the Río de la Plata and European hopes of finding silver inland.

First people

Indigenous peoples lived here for thousands of years; hand stencils in the Cueva de las Manos were painted more than 9,000 years ago.¹

Known for

Tango grew up among working-class communities in Buenos Aires and nearby Montevideo, mixing the traditions of European immigrants, people of African descent and locals, and became one of Argentina’s best-known gifts to world music and dance.²

Outside contact

Spain founded Buenos Aires in 1536, and again for good in 1580.³

The modern country

Independence in 1816 was followed by large-scale Italian and Spanish immigration in 1860–1930.³