Buenos Aires – the birthplace of tango

Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, does not look like a Latin American city at first glance. The cityscape is more reminiscent of southern European cities. The modern, elegant, often magnificent buildings mostly date from the 20th century and were mostly built by European architects or based on European models.

Like no other city on the continent, according to Abbreviationfinder, Buenos Aires has been shaped by European immigrants, who have immigrated millions of times since the 19th century. The descendants of immigrants of German origin alone are estimated to be over a million. Italians and Spaniards came to the city on the Río de la Plata in even greater numbers and contributed significantly to its appearance.

Today around 3 million people live in the city of Buenos Aires and over 11.5 million people in the greater Buenos Aires area, known as Gran Buenos Aires. Every third resident of Argentina lives in the vibrant metropolis. Buenos Aires is the cultural, commercial, industrial and political center of Argentina. The cultural offer is immense and the city is considered the most cosmopolitan metropolis in South America. The Porteños, as the residents of the city are called because of the important Atlantic port (Spanish: puerto), are extremely proud of their city. In the birthplace of tango, which comes from the poor harbor districts, the rhythm of the dance is present everywhere.

However, Buenos Aires also has major social problems to contend with. Many people live in the so-called villas miserias, the poor areas of the city. Some of these consist only of tin and wooden huts and are often not connected to the electricity or water network. Since the severe economic crisis that rocked the country between 1998 and 2002 and led to massive protests, many former members of the middle class have found themselves in poor conditions. Although the economy has recovered in recent years, poverty is still high, so that large parts of the population are excluded from the prosperity of the city.

Note
Information that applies to the entire country, e.g. on currency, entry requirements, health issues, etc., can be found atArgentina.

Name of the city	Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (German Autonomous City of Buenos Aires)
Name in German	Buenos Aires
further names	Gran Buenos Aires (= common name for the city and the greater area)
Country	Argentina
Location	Buenos Aires is located in the east of Argentina on the Río de la Plata, which flows into the Atlantic. Uruguay is on the other side of the river.
Landmark of the city	The white obelisk on the “Avenida de 9 de Julio”
Function of the city	Capital of Argentina
Area	approx. 200 km² (city) approx. 4,000 km² (Gran Buenos Aires)
Population	approx. 3 million (in the city) approx. 11.5 million (in the Gran Buenos Aires metropolitan area)
Ethnicities	The majority of the residents come from European, but many also from Asian and Arab countries.
Languages	especially Spanish
Religions	The residents are mainly Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians. Many Jews and Muslims also live in Buenos Aires.
Rivers	Río de la Plata Riachuelo Río de la Reconquista
National currency	Argentine Peso (1 Peso = 100 Centavos)
Official homepage	www.buenosaires.gov.ar
Tourist center	Web: www.bue.gob.ar
Telephone code with country code	0054 – (0) 11 – subscriber number
Time compared to CET	– 4 h
Line voltage, line frequency	220 V and 50 Hz

Buenos Aires: Known People

Roberto Arlt (1900 – 1942)
The son of a German immigrant was a writer and journalist. He mainly wrote short stories, poetry and plays.

Daniel Barenboim (born 1942)
Born in Bonaren, he comes from a Jewish family of Russian origin. The Israeli citizen is a pianist and conductor. Since 1992 he has been the director of the German State Opera in Berlin. The politically active Barenboim was awarded the “Prince of Asturias Prize” in 2002 and the “Haviva Raik Peace Prize” in 2004.

Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986)
He is one of the most famous writers in Argentina and is considered a pioneer of postmodernism. He was best known for his fantastic stories. Among the numerous awards he received are the “Alfonso Reyes Prize” (1973), the “Great Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany” (1979) and the “Premio Cervantes” (1980).

Adolfo Bioy Casares (1914-1999)
The writer, who was friends with Jorge Luis Borges and worked closely with him, wrote primarily novels and short stories. In 1990 he was awarded the “Premio Cervantes”.

Adolfo Maria Pérez Esquivel (born 1931)
The sculptor, architect and civil rights activist received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1980.

Juan Galo Lavalle (1797 –1841)
Born in Buenos Aires, Lavalle was an officer (general) and politician (governor of the province of Buenos Aires) in Argentina.
In his honor there is a statue of him in the Plaza Lavalle in Buenos Aires.
He was shot dead on October 9, 1841 in San Salvador de Jujuy – the capital of the Jujuy Province, in northwest Argentina.
His final resting place is in the “La Recoleta Cemetery” in Buenos Aires.

Osvaldo Pugliese (1905 – 1995)
The pianist and composer had a lasting impact on the Argentine tango of the 20th century.

Juan Manuel de Rosas (1793-1877)
Argentina’s first dictator seized power in 1835. In 1852 he was defeated at the Battle of Mote-Caseros and fled to England.

Hipólito Yrigoyen (1852-1933)
The politician was President of Argentina twice (1916-1922 and 1928-1930).