by Chris Pearce

Created on: September 22, 2009

Uruguay is the second smallest country in South America after Suriname. About half of its population of 3.5 million live in the capital city of Montevideo and its metropolitan area. The country is located on the east side of the continent along the Atlantic Ocean. It borders Brazil to the north, and Argentina to the west and southwest. The nation's official name is the Oriental Republic of Uruguay as it is east of the Uruguay River and the Rio de la Plata or River Plate that separate it from Argentina. Uruguay means "river where the painted birds live" in the Guarani indigenous language. There are many other interesting facts about Uruguay.

Geography and climate. Most of the country consists of plains and rolling hills. Four river basins empty into the Atlantic. The highest mountain is the rocky and treeless Cerro Catedral, or Cathedral Hill, at an altitude of just 1,685 feet. An ongoing border dispute with Brazil relating to islands and waterways on the northern coast has not affected diplomatic relations between the two countries. About 89 per cent of arable land is used for cattle and sheep and 7 per cent is under crop. Uruguay has a temperate climate with few extremes. A lack of mountains makes it windy, especially in winter and spring, and the weather can be quite changeable. Storms are common in summer.

History. The Guarani and the Charrua are the indigenous people of Uruguay. The Spanish settled in the area in the 16th century and the Portuguese in the 17th, setting off various disputes between the two groups. The country gained its independence from Spain in the 1820s. By the 1830s, the Charrua had integrated with the Spanish and the Guarani, or been killed. Two parties that fought an ongoing battle from the late 1830s to 1870 were the Colorados, or the Reds, representing Montevideo business interests and the Blancos, or the Whites, who looked after the agricultural community. Members were identified by the color of their armbands; the city group initially wore blue armbands but changed to red as blue faded in the sun. Despite the fighting, tens of thousands of Europeans migrated to Uruguay during this period, banks opened, rail and canals were built, and exports rose, assisted by the natural harbor.

A group called the Tupamaros started robbing banks and shops in the early 1960s to give to the poorer neighborhoods. The US Office of Public Safety assisted local police who were allegedly taught how to torture suspects. Finally the army defeated the Tupamaros

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>