South America

Argentina

 

Source: https://localhistories.org/a-brief-history-of-argentina/

Before Europeans came to Argentina it was thinly populated. In the Northwest, people grew crops such as potatoes and squash. They sometimes lived in walled towns and they used metal and made pottery. However, most of the indigenous people lived by hunting animals and gathering plants. They continued their hunter-gatherer lifestyle until the late 19th century.

Europeans arrived in what is now Argentina in the 16th century. In 1516 Juan de Solis reached the River Plate but he was killed by the natives. He was followed by Sebastian Cabot who reached the River Plate area in 1526. Then in 1536 Pedro de Mendoza led an expedition to the area and he built a fort. However, the Spaniards were forced to withdraw by hostile natives.

Nevertheless later in the 16th century, several towns were founded in the Northwest of what is now Argentina. Buenos Aires was founded in 1580 to give access to the sea. Yet the southern part of Argentina was left in the hands of the natives. Finally, in 1776 a new Viceroy of the River Plate was formed with Buenos Aires as its capital.

In 1806 the British captured Buenos Aires but they were forced to withdraw. In 1807 they attacked the city again but they were repelled. Nevertheless, links between Argentina and Spain weakened in the early 19th century especially after 1808 when Napoleon forced the Spanish king to abdicate and made his own brother king of Spain. Finally, on 25 May 1810, the Viceroy was deposed and a junta took control of Argentina. However, the junta did not break all links with Spain until 1816. The United Provinces of the River Plate was declared on 9 July 1816.

At first, the United Provinces consisted of what is now Argentina, Bolivia, and Uruguay. However, the new state was bitterly divided between unitarists who wanted a strong central government and federalists who wanted a loose federation of provinces.

Eventually, in the 1820s the new state broke up. Bolivia became independent in 1825 and Uruguay was created as a buffer state between Argentina and Brazil in 1828 after a war between the two countries.

In 1835 General Juan Manuel de Rosas became dictator of Argentina. He was a federalist but ironically he introduced a strong (and repressive) central government. However, Rosas eventually alienated many people in the provinces, and in 1852 a rebellion removed him from power.

Until the late 19th century the natives of Southern Argentina lived in their traditional way. However, in 1879 General Julio Rica led an army to conquer them. The Conquest of the Desert was over by 1880.

Meanwhile, the first railroad in Argentina was built in 1857. It was followed by many others. By 1900 there were over 10,000 miles of railroad in Argentina and by 1912 over 20,000 miles. The railways made it much easier to transport produce to the coast for export. Argentina exported meat, wool, and grain and by 1900 she was the richest country in South America.

Meanwhile, the population of Argentina boomed partly due to immigrants from Spain and Italy. By the end of the century, the population of Argentina was about 4 million.

In the 1920s Argentina was the 7th richest country in the world. However Argentina, like the rest of the world, was affected by the Wall Street Crash.

In 1930 the army staged a coup and General Jose F. Uriburu became president of Argentina. Uriburu called an election in 1931 (although a major party, the Radical Party was banned from taking part). Another election was held in 1937. Despite many accusations of electoral fraud, Roberto Ortiz became president with Ramon Castillo as vice-president. Ill health forced Ortiz to hand over power to Castillo in 1940. However, in 1943 the army staged another coup.

In January 1944 Argentina severed diplomatic relations with Germany and Japan. Finally on 27 March 1945, Argentina declared war on Germany. n After the 1943 coup Juan Peron gradually emerged as the leader. In 1946 he was elected president. Peron introduced a number of welfare measures and nationalized industries. Peron was re-elected in 1951 but he gradually lost support. In 1955 a revolution called the Revolution of Liberation forced Peron to flee abroad.

Several short-lived governments followed. In 1958 Arturo Frondizi was elected president of Argentina but the military removed him in 1962. More elections were held in 1963 and Dr. Arturo Illia became president. The military removed him in 1966.

However military dictatorship did not bring peace. In May 1969 rioting broke out in Cordoba. The unrest spread throughout Argentina. Meanwhile, inflation raged.

Yet in 1973 the army allowed more elections and the Peronists (supporters of Peron) won. A Peronist called Hector Campora became president. Peron then returned from exile and Campora resigned to make way for him. More elections were held in September 1973 and Peron became president. However, Peron died in 1974 and his widow Isabel Peron took power. Under her rule inflation and unrest continued. Finally, in March 1976, the army seized power again.

Argentina then suffered a brutal military dictatorship during which thousands of people ‘disappeared’ during a ‘dirty war’. Meanwhile, inflation continued to rage and Argentina became heavily indebted.

In the early 1980s, despite the repression protests spread across Argentina. To try and divert people’s minds from their problems the junta invaded the Falkland Islands on 2 April 1982. However, the war turned into a disaster when the British quickly recaptured the islands.

Meanwhile, the Argentinean economy was in dire straits. Eventually, the junta allowed elections in October 1983. Raul Alfonsin took office on 13 December 1983.

However, Alfonsin was unable to solve the problem of hyperinflation in Argentina despite austerity plans introduced in 1985 and 1987. In 1989 Alfonsin handed over power peacefully to the next elected president Carlos Saul Menem. During the 1990s Menem managed to curb inflation and he privatized industry.

In 2001-2002 Argentina suffered a severe recession. However, the economy then grew strongly for a few years. Today the economy of Argentina is growing steadily.

Meanwhile, in October 2007 Cristina Kirchner became the first elected woman president of Argentina. Then in 2015, Mauricio Macri was elected president. In 2020 the population of Argentina was 45 million.1

Argentina People Groups from The Joshua Project

Argentina. Data from The Joshua Project (https://www.joshuaproject.net)

People Reached Language Population Bible Religion Adherents Evangelical
Jew Spanish-speaking Unreached Spanish

175,000

Complete Bible Ethnic Religions

0.2

0.2

Turk Unreached Turkish

800

Complete Bible Islam

0.0

0.0

Arab Palestinian Minimally Reached Arabic-South Levantine Spoken

1,200

Portions Completed Islam

32.0

2.0

Arab Syrian Minimally Reached Arabic-North Levantine Spoken

1,495,000

Portions Completed Islam

38.0

1.4

Chinese general Minimally Reached Chinese-Mandarin

78,000

Complete Bible Buddhism

31.0

0.5

Czech Minimally Reached Czech

8,100

Complete Bible Non-Religious

30.0

0.8

Japanese Minimally Reached Japanese

38,000

Complete Bible Ethnic Religions

40.0

1.2

Lao Minimally Reached Lao

2,000

Complete Bible Buddhism

10.0

0.8

Aymara Central Superficially Reached Aymara-Central

4,500

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

1.0

Catalonian Superficially Reached Catalan

202,000

Complete Bible Christianity

96.0

0.7

Croat Superficially Reached Croatian

4,200

Complete Bible Christianity

91.0

0.3

Deaf Superficially Reached Argentine Sign Language

228,000

Portions Completed Christianity

89.3

French Superficially Reached French

17,000

Complete Bible Christianity

76.0

0.5

Galician Superficially Reached Galician

768,000

Complete Bible Christianity

96.0

0.3

Greek Superficially Reached Greek

42,000

Complete Bible Christianity

95.0

0.2

Italian Superficially Reached Italian

1,138,000

Complete Bible Christianity

83.0

1.1

Polish Superficially Reached Polish

202,000

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

0.5

Quichua Santiago del Estero Superficially Reached Quichua-Santiago del Estero

65,000

Portions Completed Christianity

94.0

0.4

Romani Vlax Superficially Reached Romani-Vlax

60,000

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

2.0

Russian Superficially Reached Russian

32,000

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

0.4

Serb Superficially Reached Serbian

6,500

Complete Bible Christianity

85.0

0.2

Slovene Superficially Reached Slovene

12,000

Complete Bible Christianity

95.0

0.3

Spaniard Superficially Reached Spanish

598,000

Complete Bible Christianity

95.0

0.2

Tehuelche Superficially Reached Mapudungun

31,000

New Testament Christianity

90.0

0.4

Tonocote Superficially Reached Quichua-Santiago del Estero

4,800

Portions Completed Christianity

70.0

0.8

Vilela Superficially Reached Toba

600

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

1.0

Afro-Paraguayan Partially Reached Spanish

1,900

Complete Bible Christianity

100.0

6.0

Afro-Peruvian Partially Reached Spanish

1,400

Complete Bible Christianity

100.0

7.0

Afro-Uruguayan Partially Reached Spanish

2,400

Complete Bible Christianity

91.0

6.0

Armenian Partially Reached Armenian-Western

152,000

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

2.5

Atacameno Kunza Partially Reached Spanish

15,000

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

5.0

Belarusian Partially Reached Belarusian

4,000

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

4.0

Black African general Partially Reached Spanish

16,000

Complete Bible Christianity

75.0

6.0

British Partially Reached English

9,600

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

7.0

Cape Verdean Partially Reached Kabuverdianu

15,000

Portions Completed Christianity

98.0

7.0

Chane Partially Reached Guarani-Eastern Bolivian

4,900

Complete Bible Ethnic Religions

50.0

8.6

Charrua Partially Reached Spanish

17,000

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

6.0

Chorote Eklenjuy Partially Reached Chorote-Iyojwa’ja

900

New Testament Christianity

70.0

8.9

Comechingon Partially Reached Spanish

39,000

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

5.0

Diaguita Partially Reached Spanish

74,000

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

4.0

German Partially Reached German-Standard

43,000

Complete Bible Christianity

78.0

7.0

Guarani Ava Partially Reached Guarani-Ava

24,000

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

10.0

Guarani Eastern Bolivian Partially Reached Guarani-Eastern Bolivian

24,000

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

4.9

Guarani Mbya Partially Reached Guarani-Mbya

9,100

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

2.3

Huarpe Partially Reached Spanish

37,000

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

5.0

Kolla Partially Reached Spanish

72,000

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

4.0

Lule Partially Reached Spanish

4,100

Complete Bible Christianity

55.0

3.0

Maimara Partially Reached Spanish

2,100

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

5.0

Mapuche Partially Reached Mapudungun

134,000

New Testament Christianity

80.0

4.0

Mocovi Partially Reached Mocovi

25,000

New Testament Christianity

60.0

10.0

Omaguaca Partially Reached Spanish

7,600

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

4.0

Ona Partially Reached Spanish

3,100

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

4.0

Pampa Partially Reached Spanish

24,000

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

3.0

Paraguayan Guarani-speaking Partially Reached Guarani-Paraguayan

605,000

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

10.0

Portuguese Partially Reached Portuguese

15,000

Complete Bible Christianity

93.0

7.0

Quechua Partially Reached Quechua-South Bolivian

83,000

Complete Bible Christianity

98.8

4.0

Quechua Northwest Jujuy Partially Reached Quechua-South Bolivian

2,100

Complete Bible Christianity

94.0

10.0

Querandi Partially Reached Spanish

4,100

Complete Bible Christianity

65.0

4.0

Rankulche Partially Reached Spanish

17,000

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

4.0

Romanian Partially Reached Romanian

17,000

Complete Bible Christianity

84.0

7.0

Sanaviron Partially Reached Spanish

3,200

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

3.0

Ukrainian Partially Reached Ukrainian

32,000

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

4.0

Uruguayan White Partially Reached Spanish

127,000

Complete Bible Christianity

71.0

3.0

Vejoz Mataco Partially Reached Wichi Lhamtes Vejoz

47,000

Complete Bible Christianity

85.0

8.0

Weenhayek Wichi Lhames Nocten Partially Reached Weenhayek

47,000

New Testament Christianity

80.0

10.0

Welsh Partially Reached Welsh

32,000

Complete Bible Christianity

60.0

8.0

Afro-Argentine Significantly Reached Spanish

137,000

Complete Bible Christianity

97.0

12.0

Afro-Bolivian Significantly Reached Spanish

1,300

Complete Bible Christianity

98.5

12.0

Argentinian White Significantly Reached Spanish

35,889,000

Complete Bible Christianity

96.9

12.4

Brazilian Black Significantly Reached Spanish

1,700

Complete Bible Christianity

89.0

23.0

Brazilian White Significantly Reached Portuguese

44,000

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

29.0

Chilean Significantly Reached Spanish

211,000

Complete Bible Christianity

89.0

18.0

Chorote Manjuy Significantly Reached Chorote-Iyo’wujwa

1,800

New Testament Christianity

80.0

14.0

Chulupe Significantly Reached Nivacle

1,200

Complete Bible Ethnic Religions

40.0

20.0

Kaiwa Significantly Reached Kaiwa

600

New Testament Christianity

70.0

35.0

Korean Significantly Reached Korean

33,000

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

30.0

Mennonites Significantly Reached Plautdietsch

4,100

Complete Bible Christianity

94.0

35.0

Native Criollo Mestizo Significantly Reached Spanish

1,801,000

Complete Bible Christianity

95.0

12.4

Peruvian Significantly Reached Spanish

172,000

Complete Bible Christianity

96.0

14.0

Pilaga Toba Significantly Reached Pilaga

5,700

New Testament Christianity

90.0

45.0

Slovak Significantly Reached Slovak

9,300

Complete Bible Christianity

80.0

12.0

Tapiete Significantly Reached Nandeva

600

Portions Completed Christianity

80.0

16.0

Toba Qom Significantly Reached Toba

140,000

Complete Bible Christianity

95.0

50.0

West Indian general Significantly Reached Spanish

2,900

Complete Bible Christianity

90.0

12.0

Wichi Mataco Significantly Reached Wichi Lhamtes Guisnay

45,000

Complete Bible Christianity

70.0

28.0