Argentina

I would like to give you some information about my country. There is a lot to say about Argentina but I am only including some factual notes. You may also find some questions and other activities at the bottom of the text.

Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic (República Argentina), is the second largest country in South America. It is a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires., which is Argentina's capital city. It is the eighth-largest country in the world by land area and the largest among Spanish-speaking nations, but Mexico, Colombia and Spain  have more population.

Location:

Argentina's continental area is between the Andes mountain range in the west and the Atlantic Ocean in the east. It borders Paraguay and Bolivia to the north, Brazil and Uruguay to the northeast, and Chile to the west and south.

Some geographical facts:

The total surface area is 2,766,891.2 km² (1,068,302.7 sq mi. Argentina is about 3,900 km (2,400 mi) long from north to south, and 1,400 km (870 mi) from east to west (maximum values). There are four major regions: the fertile central plains of the Pampas; the flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia including Tierra del Fuego; the subtropical northern flats of the Gran Chaco, and the rugged Andes mountain range along the western border with Chile.

The highest point above sea level is in Mendoza province at Cerro Aconcagua (6,962 m (22,841 ft)), also the highest point in the Southern and Western Hemisphere. The lowest point is Laguna del Carbón in Santa Cruz province, -105 m (−344 ft) below sea level. This is also the lowest point in South America.

Climate:

The generally template climate ranges from subtropical in the north to subpolar in the far south. The north is characterized by very hot, humid summers with mild drier winters. Central Argentina has hot summers with thunderstorms and cool winters. The southern regions have warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall, especially in mountainous zones. Higher areas at all latitudes present cooler conditions.

The hottest and coldest temperature extremes recorded in South America have occurred in Argentina. A record high temperature of 49.1 °C (120.4 °F), was recorded in Córdoba, on 2 January 1920. The lowest temperature recorded was −39 °C (−38 °F) in San Juan, on 17 July 1972.

Population facts:

In 2001 census, Argentina had a population of 36,260,130 inhabitants, and the official population estimate for 2009 is of 40,134,425. Argentina ranks third in South America in total population and 33rd globally.

As with other areas of new settlement such as Canada, Australia and the United States,  Argentina is considered a country of immigrants. Most Argentines descend from colonial-era settlers and from the 19th and 20th century immigrants that came from Europe. Following the arrival of the initial Spanish colonists, over 6.2 million Europeans migrated to Argentina from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries.

Religion:

The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion but also requires the government to support Roman Catholicism.

Language:

The official language of Argentina is Spanish, usually called castellano (Castilian) by Argentines. A phonetic study conducted by the Laboratory for Sensory Investigations of CONICET and the University of Toronto showed that the accent of the inhabitants of Buenos Aires (known as ‘porteños’) is closer to the Neapolitan dialect of Italian than any other spoken language. Italian immigration and other European immigrations influenced Lunfardo.  This is the slang spoken in the Río de la Plata region, permeating the vernacular vocabulary of other regions as well.

1. Where is Argentina?
2. How many inhabitants does it have?
3. What is the official language?
4. How many provinces are there?
5. What is the climate in the northern areas?
6. Where was the hottest temperature recorded?
7. What is Argentina's capital city?
8. What is 'Lunfardo'?
9. How many geographical regions are there?
10. Where is Argentina's highest point above sea level?

Find words in the text that have the same meaning as the definitions given below:

• People who leave their home country to live in a new one.
• Not severe or extreme (esp. of weather)
• Climatic condition that presents heavy rain, wind, etc.
• Not flat (esp. of a surface)
• Typical of a region (esp. of a language)

CLICK HERE TO CHECK YOUR ANSWERS