Argentina

How is the land laid out?

Argentina is wedge-shaped, wider in the north than the south. Along the west are the Andes Mountains, also wider in the north, where they include intermontane plateaus and some isolated ranges. East of them in the north are the pampas: treeless, grassy, plains, sloping eastward. South of these, the land is arid but not as flat. Argentina owns the eastern half of Tierra del Fuego¹ Island at the continent's southern tip. In the very northeast is a piece of the Paraná Plateau, named after the region's chief river.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites primarily honoring nature are Iguazu National Park, which is adjacent to another World Heritage for the same falls that is in Brasil (Brazil); Ischigualasto/ Talampaya National Parks; los Glaciares (the glaciers) national park; and the Península (peninsula) Valdés.

Who lives there?

More than 19 in 20 are Spanish-speaking, Roman Catholic Christians.

The four largest cities are Rosario, Córdoba, Buenos Aires and Mendoza.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites honoring relatively modern culture are: the Jesuit Block and Estancias of Córdoba; and the Jesuit Missions of the Guaranis (San Ignacio Miní, Sanata Ana Nuestra Señora de Loreto and Santa María Mayor).

UNESCO World Heritage Sites honoring earlier cultures are: the Cueva de las Manos (Cave of the Hands) in Río Pinturas; Quebrada de Humahuaca; and Qhapaq Ñan (Andean Road system).

Within the Area

Footnotes

1. Translates from Spanish as Land of Fire.