Arab Argentine refers to

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...

citizens or residents whose ancestry traces back to various waves of immigrants, largely of

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

ethnic,

cultural Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, and habits of the ...

and linguistic heritage and/or

identity Identity may refer to: * Identity document * Identity (philosophy) * Identity (social science) * Identity (mathematics) Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Identity'' (1987 film), an Iranian film * ''Identity'' (2003 film), ...

originating mainly from what is now

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

and

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, but also some individuals from the twenty-two countries which comprise the

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

such as

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

. Arab Argentines are one of the largest

Arab diaspora Arab diaspora (also known as MENA diaspora, as a short version for the Middle East and North Africa diaspora) refers to descendants of the Arab people, Arab Emigration, emigrants who, voluntarily or as refugees, emigrated from their native lands ...

groups in the world. Although a highly diverse group of Argentines — in ancestral origins, religion and historic identities — Arab Argentines hold a common identity in the Argentinian consciousness, being universally known as ''"turcos"'' ("Turks"), like in the rest of Latin American countries. The majority of the Arab Argentines are from either Lebanese or Syrian background with a smaller amount of Palestinian, Egyptian and Moroccan background. The interethnic marriage in the Arab community, regardless of religious affiliation, is very high; most community members have only one parent who has Arab ethnicity. As a result of this, the Arab community in Argentina shows marked

language shift Language shift, also known as language transfer or language replacement or language assimilation, is the process whereby a speech community shifts to a different language, usually over an extended period of time. Often, languages that are perceiv ...

away from Arabic. Only a few speak any Arabic and such knowledge is often limited to a few basic words. Instead the majority, especially those of younger generations, speak

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

as a first language, and have thoroughly assimilated in the local culture, Arab Argentines have been a regular presence and distinguished themselves in all walks of national life on a par with the rest of the country's melting pot population.

History

There are some indications that the Arab Muslim presence within present day Argentinian territory dates back to the time of the Spanish exploration and conquest. The first mentioned Arab settlers were the 15th century's

Moor Moor or Moors may refer to: Nature and ecology * Moorland, a habitat characterized by low-growing vegetation and acidic soils. Ethnic and religious groups * Moors, Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, Iberian Peninsula, Sicily, and Malta during ...

ish (

Morisco Moriscos (, ; pt, mouriscos ; Spanish for "Moorish") were former Muslims and their descendants whom the Roman Catholic church and the Spanish Crown commanded to convert to Christianity or face compulsory exile after Spain outlawed the open p ...

) Muslims of the Iberian peninsula that were people of Arab North African descent who explored the Americas with Spanish explorers, many of them settling in Argentina who were fleeing from persecution such as the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition ( es, Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición), commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition ( es, Inquisición española), was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand ...

. However, in the 19th century Argentina saw the first real wave of Arabs to settle within its territory. Most of the Arabs who came during this time period were from Lebanon and Syria as a result of the

1860 Mount Lebanon civil war The 1860 civil conflict in Mount Lebanon and Damascus (also called the 1860 Syrian Civil War) was a civil conflict in Mount Lebanon during Ottoman rule in 1860–1861 fought mainly between the local Druze and Christians. Following decisive Druze ...

(During that time, Lebanon and Syria were Ottoman provinces). While Arab communities existed by 1864, systematic records did not appear before 1868. From 1891 to 1920, 367,348 people of Arabic heritage immigrated into Argentina. When they were first processed in the ports of Argentina, they were classified as Turks (Spanish ''Turcos'') because what is modern day

and

was a territory of the Turkish

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, hence the popular (and erroneous)

demonym A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...

(comparable to others applied in the majority immigrant country to other groups, such as ''"tano"'' (Italian) ''"gallego"'' (Spaniard) ''"ruso"'' (Jew) etc. The causes for Arabs to leave their homeland were an accelerated increase in demographics in Lebanon, the persecution by the Ottoman Turks and the

Italo-Turkish War The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War ( tr, Trablusgarp Savaşı, "Tripolitanian War", it, Guerra di Libia, "War of Libya") was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911, to 18 October 1912. As a result o ...

. The Arab immigrants settled in the provinces of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, Córdoba,

Salta Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...

Jujuy San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...

, Tucumán,

La Rioja La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and N� ...

, San Juan, Mendoza,

Santiago del Estero Santiago del Estero (, Spanish for ''Saint-James-Upon-The-Lagoon'') is the capital of Santiago del Estero Province in northern Argentina. It has a population of 252,192 inhabitants, () making it the twelfth largest city in the country, with a surf ...

Misiones Misiones (, ''Missions'') is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil to the north, east and south, and Corrientes P ...

, Chaco, and the

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...

. A large percentage on Arabs settled in the Cuyo region (which is made up of the provinces of San Juan, San Luis, Mendoza, and La Rioja) whose landscape and crops (olive, vineyards) resemble at time the Middle East's.

Notable people

Jorge Antonio Jorge Antonio (October 14, 1917February 11, 2007) was an Argentine business man and political figure, a close adviser to President Juan Domingo Perón. Early life Born Jorge Antonio Chibene in La Boca, Buenos Aires to Syrian immigrants (his father ...

Julio Asad Julio Daniel Asad (; born 7 June 1953) is an Argentine former football player and manager. He played as a midfielder, and participated with Argentina in the 1975 Copa América. Asad was nicknamed "El Turco" due to his Syrian and Lebanese eth ...

Omar Asad Omar Andrés Asad (born 9 April 1971) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a forward. As a player, Asad spent all of his career in Vélez Sársfield, winning 8 titles with the club (including both the Copa Liberta ...

Yamil Asad Yamil Rodrigo Asad (born 27 July 1994) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Universidad Católica. Club career Vélez Sarsfield Asad played youth football and debuted professionally with Vélez Sa ...

Alfredo Avelín Alfredo Avelín (1 May 1927 – 26 January 2012) was an Argentine politician, physician and author. He served as Governor of his province of San Juan Province (Argentina), San Juan and as a member of the Argentine Senate and Argentine Chamber of De ...

Alejandro Awada Alejandro Awada (; December 7, 1961) is an Argentine character actor of Syrian and Lebanese descent. He has appeared in a great number of television series, programmes and onstage. Personal life Awada was born on 3 December 1961 in Villa Bal ...

Juliana Awada María Juliana Awada (born 3 April 1974) is an Argentine businesswoman who served as the First Lady of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. She is the first woman in this role to have received the distinction of the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of I ...

Carlos Balá Carlos Salim Balaa (13 August 1925 – 22 September 2022), known as Carlitos Balá, was an Argentine actor who specialized in children's entertainment. His trademarks were his bowl-cut hairstyle and nonsense catchphrases that include "¿Qué gus ...

Elias Bazzi Elias is the Greek equivalent of Elijah ( he, אֵלִיָּהוּ‎ ''ʾĒlīyyāhū''; Syriac: ܐܠܝܐ ''Eliyā''; Arabic: الیاس Ilyās/Elyās), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several holy ...

* Lucia Caram * Yamila Díaz *

Basilio Lami Dozo Basilio Arturo Ignacio Lami Dozo (1 February 1929 – 1 February 2017) was a member of the Argentine Air Force. He participated in the military dictatorship known as the National Reorganisation Process (1976–1983) and, along with Leopoldo For ...

Eduardo Falú Eduardo Falú (July 7, 1923August 9, 2013) was an Argentine folk music guitarist and composer. Life and work Eduardo Falú was born in El Galpón, a village near San José de Metán in the province of Salta, in 1923. His parents, Fada and Juan ...

Juan Falú Alfredo Juan Falú (born October 10, 1948) is an Argentine classical guitarist and composer. He was born in Tucumán in 1948, and his uncle, Eduardo Falú, was by then a well-known folk guitarist. A psychoanalyst by profession and adherent o ...

Daniel Hadad Daniel Hadad (born November 28, 1961) is an Argentine lawyer and businessman involved in telecommunications and media. Biography Daniel Hadad was born in Buenos Aires in 1961 into a family of Syrian origin. He earned degrees as a lawyer and jo ...

Omar Hasan Omar Hasan Jalil (born April 21, 1971 in Tucumán) is a retired Argentine rugby union footballer. He last played for Stade Toulousain in the domestic French club competition, the Top 14. He has also played for Argentina, usually as a prop. He ha ...

* Alberto Hassan *

Claudio Husaín Claudio Daniel Husaín (born 20 November 1974) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Husaín played for Vélez Sársfield and River Plate in Argentina, Italian S.S.C. Napoli and Mexican Tigres de la UANL b ...

* Darío Husaín *

Juan Luis Manzur Juan Luis Manzur (born 8 January 1969) is an Argentine surgeon and politician. A member of the Justicialist Party, he currently serves as Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers, under President Alberto Fernández. He previously served as Minister of ...

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. Ideologically, he identified as a Peronist and supported economically liberal policies. H ...

* Eduardo Menem *

Antonio Mohamed Ricardo Antonio Mohamed Matijević (born 2 April 1970) is an Argentine football manager and former player. Mohamed played as a striker, making his senior debut with Huracán in 1988 and being sold to Italian club Fiorentina in 1991. He ne ...

Daniel Mustafá Daniel Kabir Mustafá (born 2 August 1984) is a retired State of Palestine, Palestinian Association football, footballer who played as a centre-back. Club career The son of a father of Palestinian people, Palestinian descent and a mother of Ita ...

Javier Muñoz (Argentine footballer) Javier David Muñoz Mustafá (born 11 June 1980 in Firmat) is an Argentine retired footballer who played for Chiapas F.C. He has the dubious distinction of being the only player to receive two red cards in the same edition of the North America ...

Ramón Saadi Ramón Eduardo Saadi (6 February 1949 – 8 February 2023) was an Argentine senator and governor for Catamarca Province and a member of the Argentine Justicialist Party. He was a member of the Saadi family that has dominated Catamarca politic ...

Vicente Saadi Vicente Leonidas Saadi (1913 – 10 July 1988) was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. He was a senator and governor for Catamarca Province, and became the patriarch of a family that has dominated Catamarca politics since the 1940 ...

Elías Sapag Elías Canaán Sapag (Arabic: إلياس كنعان صباغ) (August 5, 1911 – June 21, 1993) was a Lebanese-born Argentine politician, long-serving senator for Neuquén Province, founder of the Neuquén People's Movement and head of th ...

Felipe Sapag Felipe Sapag (February 14, 1917 – March 14, 2010) was an Argentine politician, governor of Neuquén Province on five occasions and a leading figure in the Neuquén People's Movement and the locally influential Sapag family. Life and times Sa ...

Luz Sapag Luz María Sapag (15 June 1944 – 7 July 2010) was an Argentine politician, Mayor of the city of San Martín de los Andes and formerly a Senator representing the Neuquén Province under the aegis of the Neuquino People's Movement. Sapag was ...

Mohamed Alí Seineldín Mohamed Alí Seineldín (Arabic:محمد علي زين الدين) (November 12, 1933 – September 2, 2009) was an Argentine army colonel who participated in two failed uprisings against the democratically elected governments of both President R ...

Zulema Yoma Zulema Fátima Yoma (born 18 December 1942) was the First Lady of Argentina from 1989 until 1991, when she divorced President Carlos Menem. Biography A native of Nonogasta in La Rioja Province, Yoma was married for twenty-five years (1966–91) ...

References

External links

The History of Arab Argentines at Internet Web Archive
{{Immigration to Argentina Ethnic groups in Argentina

History

Notable people

See also

References

External links