Argentina

Geography

Argentina borders the Atlantic Ocean as well as the countries of Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile. The nation claims land outside its native borders as well: the Falkland Islands, the South Georgia Islands, the South Sandwich Islands, as well as part of Antarctica. It can claim the second largest nation in South America after only Brazil. In general terms, the country can be split into three basic parts: the fertile plains of the Pampas, the plateau of Patagonia, and the Andes mountains that lies within its borders. Water covers 1.1% of its land surface via the rivers Paraguay, Bermejo, Colorado, Uruguay, and the Parana. Argentina is largely temperate in climate although the northernmost region is subtropical and the southernmost, in Antarctica, is arid.

Culture

Contrary to most South American nations, Argentina holds its European decent with pride. Consciously imitated, and with help from its unusual number of European decedents, the nation and its cities hold a distinct European flavor. Best known for its music and dance - especially tango. Argentinean tango is not just the popular orchestral music, but instead adds its own influence to the style. Lyrics are sung in the dialect Lunfardo and are so beautiful and elegant that these lyrics are poetry in their own right. Argentinean rock music as well as classical European music are also very popular. Argentinean food is also well regarded due to its distinct ethnic and European flavors. Especially well known are its empanadas and its barbecued foods.

Unbeknownst to many, the languages in Argentina are more varied than just Spanish. Welsh-language villages aren't few and far between as well as a couple German-speaking cities; other languages such as Chinese and Russian can be found in the larger cities like Buenos Ares. The use of Spanish is also unusual: Argentina is the largest nation to speak voseo: to use the pronoun vos instead of t. The most prevalent dialect of Spanish is Rioplatenese, spoken by the peoples in the Rio de la Plata. This accent is quite different from other accents of Spanish around the world. The dialect of the peoples of Buenos Aires is likewise closest in relation to Napolitano Italian than to any other language. This is probably because of the high rate of Italians in Buenos Aires, who influenced the slang in the city known as Lunfardo.

History

Until European colonization hit the present nation of Argentina in 1502, it was inhabited only by the native Diaguiti on the outskirts of the Incan empire, and the easternmost Guarani. Spain founded the capital of Buenos Aires as its first colony in 1580. Argentineans didn't claim independence from its conquerors until 1816 and even then, discord among its peoples lasted until a constitution was made in 1853. Now owning its own country, the Argentineans rose in the ranks of international trade and economy becoming the 10th most wealthy nation in the world from 1880 to 1930. When the most conservative president, Juan Peron, was elected in 1946, the strong economy slowly crumbled under his near-communist ideas. He was deposed in 1955 but the new government could only slowly revive the economy. With terrorism at its height, Peron again claimed power in 1973 but the terrorism didn't stop. He finally died in 1974 with his wife now in power but she was deposed in 1976 and the military claimed power until 1983. That year, Argentina once again becomes a democratic nation under Raul Alfonsin's Radical government. He failed to better the economy and his successor, Carlos Menem, was able to temporarily raise the economy to unseen heights in decades. However, with the global recession in the late 1990s, national industry crumbled and he resigned in 2001. Three presidents quickly succeeded each other until Eduardo Duhalde took power in 2002. He made the mistake of separating the link of the peso from the dollar causing a massive currency deprecation and high inflation. Fortunately the economy began to better itself by the end of the year and in 2003, Nestor Kirchner became president.

Economy

Argentina is lucky, compared to other South American nations and is considered the most developed nation on the continent: it claims numerous natural resources and a historically large middle class. Unfortunately, the 1970s found itself in large debt and high inflation and by the late 2001 the nation's economy had finally crumbled. The early 21st century was a mass attempt by the government to get its economy back to normal. 2002 saw the Argentinean peso at 75% its previous value but by 2003 inflation was dropping and international trade was slowly rising. The middle of the decade, however, can claim a far smaller number in poverty with so many new jobs back on the market. The economy grew nearly 10% each year since 2002 and experts believe the nation's economy to grow another 9% in 2006.

Study Abroad

• Butler University: Argentina
• ELTAP
• Global Student Teaching
• Language and Culture in Buenos Aires
• CIEE Argentina
• ISEP-Direct Exchanges
• IES Argentina - Buenos Aires
• Buenos Aires Summer Programs
• ISA: Study in Buenos Aires
• Lexia in Buenos Aires
• CCIS Argentina
• Study in Argentina
• Spanish Schools Argentina
• Coined Argentina
• Learn Spanish In Argentina
• AHA: Rosario
• Argentina Study Abroad Programs