BUENOS
AIRES - ARGENTINA |
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Buenos Aires (BWEH-naus EYE-ress, meaning "Good Winds" in
Spanish) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and
port, as well as one of the largest in South America. The city
proper has a population of close to 3 million, while the Greater
Buenos Aires metropolitan area has more than 12 million
inhabitants. Buenos Aires is located at the southern side of the
La Plata River (River Plate), on the southeast coast of the
South American continent. (Montevideo, Uruguay is located across
the river.). |
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The population of Buenos Aires consists
primarily of Argentines of Spanish, mestizo, and Italian descent, although
there are sizable communities of people with Arab, Jewish, Armenian, Chinese,
and Korean origins. Most inhabitants are Roman Catholic, and Spanish is the
primary language.
Buenos Aires is the Federal Capital of Argentina and has been accorded
autonomous status in the 1994 constitution (previously, the mayor was
elected directly by the President of the Republic). The suburbs located on
Gran Buenos Aires (Greater Buenos Aires) belong to Buenos Aires Province,
but the autonomous city of Buenos Aires does not.
Culture of Buenos Aires
Immigration and Language Variations
In the early 20th century, Argentina absorbed millions of immigrants, mostly
from Italy and Spain. The Italian community's adoption of Spanish was
gradual. The pidgin of Italian and Spanish was called cocoliche; it fell out
of use with time, and today survives in a few sentences, usually uttered for
comic relief.
The lunfardo argot originated within the jail population, and spread to all
porteños with time. Lunfardo uses words from several dialects of Italian,
mainly Sicilian, and tricks such as inverting syllabes within a word
(vesre). Lunfardo is used by porteños mostly in informal settings.
Tango
Many immigrants arrived in Buenos Aires without their families, which led to
a significant phenomenon of prostitution starting around 1890. Its most
significant product is the tango dance, which originated in brothels but
later found a wider audience. In 1902, the Teatro Opera started organizing
tango balls. In the 1920's, tango was adopted by the Parisian high society
and then all over the world.
The Buenos Aires style of tango music evolved into an elaborated genre. In
its heyday, tango had famous Aníbal Troilo and Juan D'Arienzo, and singers
like Carlos Gardel and Edmundo Rivero.
Buenos Aires now holds an annual "Tango Day" each December 11.
In San Telmo, Sundays are devoted to tango shows on the streets and an
antiques bazaar around Dorrego Square.
Miscellaneous
The Colón Theater is one of the world's best-known opera houses.
Buenos Aires was home for writers Jorge Luis Borges, Ernesto Sabato, and
Julio Cortázar (who emigrated to France).
The University of Buenos Aires produced several Nobel Prize winners.
Barrios
The city is divided into 47 barrios (neighborhoods).
Football (soccer)
Football is a passion for Argentines. The city has many teams playing in the
major league. The best-known rivalry is the one between River Plate and Boca
Juniors.
Diego Armando Maradona, widely hailed as one of the greatest players ever,
started his career in Argentinos Juniors and later played in Boca Juniors
(he also played with the national team and several sides in Europe, notably
SSC Napoli). |
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