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Spanish Argentine
*Hispano Argentino*
	;
	Notable Spanish-Argentines; José de San Martín · Manuel Belgrano · Isabel Perón; Raúl Alfonsín · Javier Saviola · Libertad Lamarque;
Total population
	Indefinite; est 30,000,000 Difficult to measure because the vast majority of Argentines have some Spanish ancestry
Regions with significant populations
	Argentina
Languages
	Rioplatense Spanish. Minority speaks Galician, Catalan, and Basque.
Religion
	Predominantly Roman Catholicism
Related ethnic groups
	Spanish, Galicians, Castilians, Catalans, Asturians, Cantabrians, Aragonese, Basques

Spanish settlement in Argentina, that is the arrival of Spanish emigrants in Argentina, took place in the period before Argentina's independence from Spain and again in large numbers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At the height of the Spanish Empire, Spain was the sole colonial power in Argentina up to the 1816 declaration of Argentine independence. And so, before 1816, almost all European settlers in Argentina were from Spain, relating to religious affairs, government, and commercial business. A substantial Spanish population gradually built up in the new cities, with some mixing with the indigenous populations, and later, with other Spanish and European immigrants.

Since most immigrants to Argentina before the 20th century were of Spanish descent, and the fact that over half of the 20th century immigrants to Argentina were of Spanish descent- coming from all over Spain, the vast majority of Argentinians are of mostly Spanish ancestry. Furthermore, ever since Argentina declared independence from Spain and on to the present day, criollo Spaniards from all over Spanish-colonized Latin America have emigrated to Argentina for economic opportunity- further contributing to Argentina's unique Spanish heritage. Although most Argentines have Spanish blood, and Argentina and Spain continue to share many common cultural aspects (the Spanish language, the religion of Roman Catholicism, and criollo traditions), some Argentine elites and recent European immigrants diminished the Spanish culture from Argentina as a newly independent country, and created an entirely new culture- modern Argentine culture. But the legacy of past Spanish culture, colonialism, and immigration pervades Argentina to this day.

[edit] History

The interplay between Argentine and Spanish culture goes back a long way, and has historically been quite complex. Spanish settlement dates back to 1500s, and from then on, many criollo Spaniards would populate the area of Argentina, with some intermarrying with non-Spaniards. Spain established a permanent colony on the site of Buenos Aires in 1580, although initial settlement was primarily overland from Peru. The Spanish further integrated Argentina into their vast empire by establishing the Vice Royalty of Rio de la Plata in 1776, and Buenos Aires became a flourishing port. Argentina would become a crucial part of the Spanish Empire in South America.

The Argentine independence movement would however drastically change Argentine-Spanish relations. The Argentine movement for independence from Spain would in fact begin in the powerful city of Buenos Aires, with Buenos Aires formally declaring independence from Spain on July 9, 1816. Following the defeat of the Spanish, centralist and federalist groups waged a lengthy conflict between themselves to determine the future of the nation of Argentina. Prior to its independence, Spaniards in Argentina who were against the Spanish Empire and desired their independence came to be known as Argentines, and those who were opposed to independence continued to be identified as Spaniards. But a few generations after independence, and particularly after recent immigration, most Argentines began to see themselves as purely Argentine out of pride in their new developing nation.

[edit] Recent Immigration

During the 19th and 20th centuries, there would be an influx of Spanish immigrants to Argentina from all over Spain, after the creation of the modern Argentinian state. Between 1857 and 1940, more than 2 million Spanish people emigrated to Argentina, mostly from Galicia, Basque Country, Asturias, Cantabria, Catalonia in northern Spain, and also from Andalusia in southern Spain.

Galician Spaniards make up 70% of the Spanish population in Argentina. The city with the second greatest number of Galician people is Buenos Aires, where immigration from Galicia was so important that today all Spaniards, regardless of their origin within Spain, are often referred to as gallegos (Galicians) in Argentina.

Also, around 10% of the Argentine population descend from Basque people, both Spanish and French, and are described as Basque Argentines. They gather in several Basque cultural centres installed in most large cities in the country.

[edit] Modern Times

While there continues to be interest among the population in European affairs and their European heritage, few Argentines seeks to imitate or spread modern Spanish culture throughout Argentina.

While a sense of Argentine culture is very strong throughout the country, there do remain some cultural differences between the porteños of Buenos Aires, and the rest of the old, more traditional Argentina going back to the founding of Argentina as an independent nation.

[edit] Figures

Spanish net migration to Argentina from 1857 to 1976
Year period	Spanish immigrants
1857-1860	1,819
1861-1870	15,567
1871-1880	24,706
1881-1890	134,492
1891-1900	73,551
1901-1910	488,174
1911-1920	181,478
1921-1930	232,637
1931-1940	11,286
1941-1950	110,899
1951-1960	98,801
1961-1970	9,514
1971-1976	-2,784
Total	1,380,140

[edit] References

[edit] See also