Argentina

A

Population Characteristics

Argentina has a population of 40,301,927 (2007 estimate). The overall population density was about 14.7 people per sq km (38 per sq mi).

B

Principal Cities

Important cities include the capital, Buenos Aires, population 3,018,102 (2005 estimate); Córdoba, population 1,368,109 (2001), a major manufacturing and university city; the river port of Rosario, 908,163 (2001); La Plata, 520,647 (2001), capital of Buenos Aires Province; Mar del Plata, 519,707 (2001), a resort city at the mouth of the River Plate; San Miguel de Tucumán, 527,150 (2001), a diversified manufacturing centre; Salta, 462,051 (2001), famous for its colonial architecture; and Mendoza, 110,993 (2001), hub of an important agricultural and wine-growing region.

C

Language

Spanish is the official language and is spoken by the overwhelming majority of Argentines (33 million mother-tongue speakers). At least 24 Native American languages are spoken, including: South Bolivian Quechua (850,000), Santiago del Estero Quichua (60,000), Mapudungun (40,000 or more), and Toba (15,000 to 20,000). Some immigrant languages are also spoken in Argentina, notably Italian (1.5 million), North Levantine Spoken Arabic (1 million), Standard German (400,000), Japanese (32,000), and Welsh (25,000).

D

Religion

Roman Catholics make up about 91 per cent of the population. Judaism, Protestantism, and a number of other religions, both Christian and non-Christian, are practised, but several faiths and sects are banned as “injurious to public order”. By law, the president and vice-president of Argentina must be Roman Catholic.

E

Education

Primary education is compulsory from ages 5 to 14 and free from primary to university level. In 2000 about 4.9 million pupils attended primary schools; 3.8 million attended secondary and vocational schools. In 1994-1995 there were 740,500 university students. Argentina’s literacy rate of about 97 per cent is one of the highest in Latin America. In 2002–2003 the government spent 4.3 per cent of gross national product (GNP) on education.

Argentina has 40 national universities and many state and private universities. The principal institution is the University of Buenos Aires (1821). Other major national universities are the Catholic University of Argentina (1958), National Technological University (1959), National University of Córdoba (1613), and other universities located in Bahía Blanca (1956), La Plata (1897), Mendoza (1939), San Miguel de Tucumán (1914), and Rosario (1968).