Buenos Aires, Argentina

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Buenos Aires is the capital, and largest city, of Argentina, currently the

second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent. The city of Buenos Aires is not part of Buenos Aires Province, nor is it its capital; rather, it is an autonomous federal district. Greater Buenos Aires is the third-largest conurbation in Latin America, with a population of around 13 million. 

Buenos Aires is considered an Alpha World City listed by the Loughborough University group's (GaWC) 2008 inventory.

After the internal conflicts of the 19th century, Buenos Aires was federalised and removed from Buenos Aires Province in 1880. The city limits were enlarged to include the former towns of Belgrano and Flores, which are both now neighbourhoods of the city.

Buenos Aires (English: Fair Winds or Good Air (see Names of Buenos Aires)) was originally named after the sanctuary of "Nostra Signora di Bonaria" (Italian for "Our Lady of Bonaria") in Cagliari, Sardinia. In the 1994 constitution the city became autonomous, hence its formal name: Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, in English, Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.

People from Buenos Aires are referred to as porteños (people of the port).

History

First Settlement

Seaman Juan Díaz de Solís, navigating in the name of Spain, was the first European to reach the Río de la Plata in 1516. His expedition was cut short when he was killed during an attack by the native Charrúa tribe in what is now Uruguay.

The city of Buenos Aires was first established as Ciudad de Nuestra Señora Santa María del Buen Ayre (literally "City of Our Lady Saint Mary of the Fair Winds") on 2 February 1536 by a Spanish expedition led by Pedro de Mendoza. The settlement founded by Mendoza was located in what is today the

San Telmo district of Buenos Aires, south of the city center.

More attacks by the 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, who arrived by sailing down the Paraná River from Asunción (now the capital of Paraguay). He dubbed the settlement "Santísima Trinidad" and its port became "Puerto de Santa María de los Buenos Aires."

Colonial History

From its earliest days, Buenos Aires depended primarily on trade. During

most of the 17th and 18th centuries, Spain insisted that all trade to Europe

pass through Lima, Peru so that taxes could be collected. This scheme

frustrated the traders of Buenos Aires, and a thriving contraband industry

developed. This also instilled a deep resentment in porteños towards the

Spanish authorities.

Sensing these feelings, Charles III of Spain progressively eased the trade

restrictions and finally declared Buenos Aires an open port in the late

1700s. The capture of Porto Bello by British forces also fueled the need to

foster commerce via the Atlantic route, to the detriment of Lima-based trade

Charles's placating actions did not have the desired effect, and the

porteños, some of them versed in the ideology of the French Revolution,

became even more convinced of the need for Independence from Spain.

During the British invasions of the Río de la Plata, British forces attacked

Buenos Aires twice, in 1806 and 1807, but were repelled both times by local

militias. Ultimately, on 25 May 1810, while Spain was occupied with the

Peninsular War and after a week of mostly peaceful demonstrations, the

criollo citizens of Buenos Aires successfully ousted the Spanish Viceroy and

established a provisional government. 25 May is now celebrated as a national

holiday (May Revolution Day). Formal independence from Spain was declared in

1816.

Historically, Buenos Aires has been Argentina's main venue for liberal and

free-trade ideas, while many of the provinces, especially to the northwest,

advocated a more conservative Catholic approach to political and social

issues. Much of the internal tension in Argentina's history, starting with

the centralist-federalist conflicts of the 19th century, can be traced back

to these contrasting views. In the months immediately following the 25 May

Revolution, Buenos Aires sent a number of military envoys to the provinces

with the intention of obtaining their approval. Many of these missions ended

in violent clashes, and the enterprise fueled the tensions between the

capital and the provinces.

In the 19th century the city was blockaded twice by naval forces: by the

French from 1838 to 1840, and later by a joint Anglo-French expedition from

1845 to 1848. Both blockades failed to force the city into submission, and

the foreign powers eventually desisted from their demands.

Modern History

During most of the 19th century, the political status of the city remained a

sensitive subject. It was already capital of Buenos Aires Province, and

between 1853 and 1860 it was the capital of the seceded State of Buenos

Aires. The issue was fought out more than once on the battlefield, until the

matter was finally settled in 1880 when the city was federalised and became

the seat of government, with its Mayor appointed by the President. The Casa

Rosada became the seat of the President.

In addition to the wealth generated by the fertile pampas, railroad

construction in the second half of the 19th century increased the economic

power of Buenos Aires as raw materials flowed into its factories. Buenos

Aires became a multicultural city that ranked itself with the major European

capitals. The Colón Theater became one of the world's top opera venues. The

city's main avenues were built during those years, and the dawn of the 20th

century saw the construction of South America's then-tallest buildings and

first underground system.

By the 1920s Buenos Aires was a favoured destination for immigrants from

Europe, particularly Spain and Italy, as well as from Argentina's provinces

and neighbouring countries. Shanty towns (villas miseria) started growing

around the city's industrial areas during the 1930s, leading to pervasive

social problems which contrasted sharply with Argentina's image as a country

of riches. A second construction boom from 1945 to 1980 reshaped downtown

and much of the city.

Buenos Aires was the cradle of Peronism: the now-mythologized demonstration

of 17 October 1945 took place in Plaza de Mayo. Industrial workers of the

Greater Buenos Aires industrial belt have been Peronism's main support base

ever since, and Plaza de Mayo became the site for demonstrations and many of

the country's political events; on 16 June 1955, however, a splinter faction

of the Navy bombed the Plaza de Mayo area, killing 364 civilians (see

Bombing of Plaza de Mayo). This was the only time the city was attacked from

the air, and the event was followed by a military uprising which deposed

President Perón, three months later.

In the 1970s the city suffered from the fighting between left-wing

revolutionary movements (Montoneros, E.R.P. and F.A.R.) and the right-wing

paramilitary group Triple A, supported by Isabel Perón, who became president

of Argentina in 1974 after Juan Perón's death.

The military coup of 1976, led by Jorge Rafael Videla, only escalated this

conflict; the "Dirty War" resulted in 30,000 desaparecidos (people kidnapped

and killed by the military during the years of the junta). The silent

marches of their mothers (Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo) are a well-known

image of Argentines suffering during those times.

The dictatorship also drew up plans for a network of freeways intended to

relieve the city's acute traffic gridlock. The plan, however, called for a

seemingly indiscriminate razing of residential areas and, though only three

of the eight planned were put up at the time, they were mostly obtrusive

raised freeways that continue to blight a number of formerly comfortable

neighborhoods to this day.

The city was visited by Pope John Paul II twice: in 1982, due to the

outbreak of the Falklands War (Spanish: Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del

Atlántico Sur), and a second visit in 1987, which gathered crowds never

before seen in the city.

On 17 March 1992 a bomb exploded in the Israeli Embassy, killing 29 and

injuring 242. Another explosion, on 18 July 1994 destroyed a building

housing several Jewish organizations, killing 85 and injuring many more,

these incidents marked the beginning of Middle Eastern terrorism to South

America.

Following a 1993 agreement, the Argentine Constitution was amended to give

Buenos Aires autonomy and rescinding, among other things, the president's

right to appoint the city's mayor (as had been the case since 1880). On 30

June 1996, voters in Buenos Aires chose their first elected mayor (Chief of

Government).

On 30 December 2004 a fire at the República Cromagnon nightclub killed

almost 200 people, one of the greatest non-natural tragedies in Argentine

history.

Religion

Most inhabitants are Roman Catholic, though a number of studies over the

past few decades suggest that fewer than 20% are actively practicing. Buenos

Aires is the seat of a Roman Catholic metropolitan archbishop (the Catholic

primate of Argentina), currently Jorge Cardinal Bergoglio. There are

Protestant, Orthodox Christian, Muslim, and Jewish minorities.

Geography

The limits of Buenos Aires proper are determined in the eastern part and

north-east by the Rio de la Plata, in the southern part and southeast by the

Riachuelo and to the northwest, west and Southwest by Avenida General Paz, a

24-kilometer (15 mi) long highway that separates the province of Buenos

Aires from the city.

The city of Buenos Aires lies in the pampa region, except for some zones

like the Buenos Aires Ecological Reserve, the Boca Juniors (football) Club

sports city", Jorge Newbery Airport, the Puerto Madero neighborhood and the

main port itself; these were all built on reclaimed land along the coasts of

the Rio de la Plata (the world's largest estuary).

The region was formerly crossed by different creeks and lagoons, some of

which were refilled and others tubed. Among the most important creeks are

Maldonado, Vega, Medrano, Cildañez and White. In 1908 many creeks were

channeled and rectified, as floods were damaging the city's infrastructure.

Starting in 1919, most creeks were enclosed. Notably, the Maldonado was

tubed in 1954, and currently runs below Juan B. Justo Avenue.

Economy

Buenos Aires is the financial, industrial, commercial, and cultural hub of

Argentina. Its port is one of the busiest in South America; navigable rivers

by way of the Rio de la Plata connect the port to north-east Argentina,

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. Tax collection

related to the port has caused many political problems in the past.

The economy in the city proper alone, measured by Gross Geographic Product

(adjusted for purchasing power), totalled US$ 84.7 billion (US$ 28,200 per

capita) in 2006 and amounts to nearly a quarter of Argentina's as a whole.

Metro Buenos Aires, according to one well-quoted study, constitutes the 13th

largest economy among the world's cities. The Buenos Aires Human Development

Index (0.923 in 1998) is likewise high by international standards.

To the west of Buenos Aires is the Pampa Húmeda, the most productive

agricultural region of Argentina produces wheat, soybeans and corn (as

opposed to the dry southern Pampa, mostly used for cattle farming and more

recently production of premium Buenos Aires wines). Meat, dairy, grain,

tobacco, wool and leather products are processed or manufactured in the

Buenos Aires metro area. Other leading industries are automobile

manufacturing, oil refining, metalworking, machine building and the

production of textiles, chemicals, clothing and beverages.

Culture

Strongly influenced by European culture, Buenos Aires is sometimes referred

to as the "Paris of South America".

Buenos Aires is the site of the Teatro Colón, one of the world's greatest

opera houses. It is closed for renovations until at least 2010. There are

several symphony orchestras and choral societies. The city has numerous

museums related to history, fine arts, modern arts, decorative arts, popular

arts, sacred art, arts and crafts, theatre and popular music, as well as the

preserved homes of noted art collectors, writers, composers and artists. The

city is home to hundreds of bookstores, public libraries and cultural

associations, as well as the largest concentration of active theatres in

Latin America. It has a world-famous zoo and Botanical Garden, a large

number of landscaped parks and squares, as well as churches and places of

worship of many denominations, many of which are architecturally noteworthy.

Language

Known as Rioplatense Spanish, Buenos Aires' Spanish (as that of other cities

like Rosario and Montevideo, Uruguay) is characterised by voseo, yeísmo and

aspiration of s in various contexts. It is heavily influenced by the

dialects of Spanish spoken in Andalusia and Murcia. A phonetic study

conducted by the Laboratory for Sensory Investigations of CONICET and the

University of Toronto showed that the prosody of porteño is closer to the

Neapolitan language of Italy than to any other spoken language.

In the early 20th century, Argentina absorbed millions of immigrants, many

of them Italians, who spoke mostly in their local dialects (mainly

Neapolitan, Sicilian and Genoan). Their adoption of Spanish was gradual,

creating a pidgin of Italian dialects and Spanish that was called cocoliche.

Its usage declined around the 1950s.

Many Spanish immigrants were from Galicia, and Spaniards are still

generically referred to in Argentina as gallegos (Galicians). Galician

language, cuisine and culture had a major presence in the city for most of

the 20th century. In recent years, descendants of Galician immigrants have

led a mini-boom in Celtic music (which also highlighted the Welsh traditions

of Patagonia).

Yiddish was commonly heard in Buenos Aires, especially in the Balvanera

garment district and in Villa Crespo until the 1960s. Korean and Chinese

have become significant since the 1970s. Most of the newer immigrants learn

Spanish quickly and assimilate into city life.

The Lunfardo argot originated within the prison population, and in time

spread to all porteños. Lunfardo uses words from Italian dialects, from

Brazilian Portuguese, from African and Caribbean languages and even from

English. Lunfardo employs humorous tricks such as inverting the syllables

within a word (vesre). Today, Lunfardo is mostly heard in tango lyrics; the

slang of the younger generations has been evolving away from it.

Tango

Tango music was born in the suburbs of Buenos Aires, notably in the brothels

of the Junín y Lavalle district and in the arrabales (poorer suburbs). Its

sensual dance moves were not seen as respectable until adopted by the

Parisian high society in the 1920s, and then all over the world. In Buenos

Aires, tango-dancing schools (known as academias) were usually men-only

establishments.

Tango consists of a variety of styles that developed in different regions

and eras of Argentina and Uruguay as well as in other locations around the

world. The dance developed in response to many cultural elements, such as

the crowding of the venue and even the fashions in clothing. The styles are

mostly danced in either open embrace, where lead and follow connect at arms

length, or close embrace, where the lead and follow connect chest-to-chest.

Early tango was known as tango criollo, or simply tango. Today, there are

many tango dance styles, including Argentine tango, Uruguayan tango,

Ballroom tango (American and International styles), Finnish tango and

vintage tangos.

Notable Streets and Avenues

* Avenida Alvear (the avenue passes through the upscale Recoleta area

and is the address for a number of five-star hotels and embassies, many of

them former mansions)

* Caminito (colorfully restored by local artist Benito Quinquela Martín)

* Avenida Corrientes (a principal thoroughfare in Buenos Aires, the

avenue is intimately tied to the Tango and Porteño culture)

* Avenida del Libertador (this avenue connects downtown to upscale areas

to the northwest, passing by many of the city's best-known museums, gardens

and cultural points of interest)

* Avenida de Mayo (the avenue is often compared with those of Madrid,

Barcelona and Paris for its sophisticated buildings of Art Nouveau,

Neoclassic and eclectic styles)

* Florida Street (an elegant pedestrian street, downtown)

* Avenida 9 de Julio (one of the widest avenues in the World, its name honors Argentina's Independence Day)