Famous landmarks in Argentina

Argentina is a big country in the south of South America, stretching from hot northern forests all the way down to icy Patagonia near Antarctica. Its capital is Buenos Aires, and about 46 million people live there. Argentina is famous for tango, football, cowboys called gauchos, the Andes mountains and huge glaciers. It is the eighth-largest country in the world.

On My Earth Toy you can visit the Perito Moreno Glacier, the pink Casa Rosada, the Obelisco, the Teatro Colón opera house and the Palacio Barolo in Buenos Aires. Look out for animals too: the Andean condor, the Magellanic penguin, the guanaco and the Patagonian mara.

Geography and nature

The Andes run along Argentina's western border. Here stands Aconcagua, at about 6,960 metres the highest mountain outside Asia. In the middle of the country lie the Pampas, flat grasslands with rich farms and cattle ranches. The south is Patagonia, a windy land of steppes, lakes and glaciers. In the northeast, the Iguazú Falls on the border with Brazil form one of the largest waterfall systems in the world.

People, languages and culture

Spanish is the main language, spoken with a special Argentine accent. Many Argentines have Spanish or Italian ancestors, and there are also Indigenous peoples. Tango music and dance were born in the port neighbourhoods of the Río de la Plata. People love sharing mate, a herbal tea sipped through a metal straw, and asado, a big barbecue. Football is a passion: Argentina has won the FIFA World Cup three times.

History in a nutshell

Before Europeans arrived, many Indigenous peoples lived across the land, and the Inca Empire reached into the northwest. Spain colonised the region in the 1500s, and Buenos Aires grew into a key port. Argentina declared independence on 9 July 1816. In the late 1800s and early 1900s millions of immigrants arrived from Europe. The country went through periods of military rule in the 20th century and has been a democracy since 1983.