Corrientes (;

Guaraní Guarani, Guaraní or Guarany may refer to Ethnography * Guaraní people, an indigenous people from South America's interior (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia) * Guaraní language, or Paraguayan Guarani, an official language of Paraguay * ...

: Taragüí, literally: "Currents") is the capital city of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Corrientes Corrientes (; Guaraní: Taragüí, literally: "Currents") is the capital city of the province of Corrientes, Argentina, located on the eastern shore of the Paraná River, about from Buenos Aires and from Posadas, on National Route 12. It ha ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, located on the eastern shore of the Paraná River, about from

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 ...

and from Posadas, on National Route 12. It has a population of 346,334 according to the 2010 Census. It lies opposite its twin city, Resistencia, Chaco. Corrientes has a mix of colonial and modern architecture, several churches and a number of lapacho, ceibo, jacaranda and orange trees. It is also home to one of the biggest carnival and

chamamé Chamamé ( Guarani for: party, disorder) is a folk music genre from Northeast Argentina and Argentinian Mesopotamia. In 2020, Chamamé was inscribed in UNESCO's Intangible cultural heritage list after it was nominated by Argentina in 2018. C ...

celebrations in the country. The annual average temperature is . The annual rainfall is around .

Transportation

Located in the Argentine Littoral, near the

Argentina–Paraguay border The Argentina–Paraguay border is the line that limits the territories of Argentina and Paraguay. This boundary is solely defined by three major rivers: the Pilcomayo, Paraná and Paraguay, being one of the largest natural borders in the world. ...

, the

General Belgrano Bridge The General Manuel Belgrano Bridge ( es, Puente General Manuel Belgrano) is a road bridge that joins the Argentine cities of Corrientes (capital of the Corrientes Province in the Mesopotamia) and Resistencia (capital of Chaco in the Chaco Regio ...

crosses the Paraná River which serves as the natural border with the neighbouring

Chaco Province Chaco (; Wichi: ''To-kós-wet''), officially the Province of Chaco ( es, provincia del Chaco ), is one of the 23 provinces in Argentina. Its capital and largest city, is Resistencia. It is located in the north-east of the country. It is borde ...

. On the other side of the bridge is Resistencia, capital of Chaco. To the west and up the Paraná, between

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

and Argentina, lies the Yaciretá dam, one of the largest hydroelectric power generators in the world. The

Doctor Fernando Piragine Niveyro International Airport Corrientes International Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto Internacional de Corrientes), also known as Doctor Fernando Piragine Niveyro International Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto Internacional Doctor Fernando Piragine Niveyro and Cambá P ...

at coordinates , away from the city, serves the city. The Ferrocarril Económico Correntino narrow gauge railway line to Mburucuyá operated from 1912 until 1927.

History

In 1516

Juan Díaz de Solís Juan Díaz de Solís ( – 20 January 1516) was a 16th-century navigator and explorer. He is also said to be the first European to land on what is now modern day Uruguay. Biography His origins are disputed. One document records him as a Portuguese ...

commanded the first expedition to reach the area populated mainly by

aboriginals, but his expedition was attacked and Solís perished in the adventure. Sebastian Cabot established in 1527 the ''Sancti Spiritu'' fort upstream of the Paraná River, and in 1536

Pedro de Mendoza Pedro de Mendoza () (c. 1499 – June 23, 1537) was a Spanish ''conquistador'', soldier and explorer, and the first ''adelantado'' of New Andalusia. Setting sail Pedro de Mendoza was born in Guadix, Grenada, part of a large noble family that ...

reached further north into the basin of the river, searching for the ''Sierras of Silver''. Juan Torres de Vera y Aragón founded the city on April 3, 1588 and named it as ''San Juan de Vera de las Siete Corrientes'' ("Saint John of Vera of the Seven Currents"), which was later shortened to ''Corrientes''. The "seven currents" refer to the seven peninsulas on the shore of the river at this place, that produced wild currents that made difficult the navigation of the river through this part. Nevertheless, its position between

Asunción Asunción (, , , Guarani: Paraguay) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay o ...

- in present

- and

made it an important middle point, especially because of its 55-metre-high lands that prevent flooding when the water level rises. In 1615

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

settled near the

Uruguay River The Uruguay River ( es, Río Uruguay, ; pt, Rio Uruguai, ) is a major river in South America. It flows from north to south and forms parts of the boundaries of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of La M ...

. In 1807 the city resisted the British invasions. During the Argentine War of Independence it was in permanent conflict with the centralist government of

, but the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War, also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It was the deadlies ...

united them after the city was attacked by

an forces in 1865.

Climate

The annual average temperature is . The annual rainfall is around . The

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

subtype for this climate is ''Cfa'' ( humid subtropical climate). Frosts are rare; with the dates of the first and last frost being July 5 and July 12 respectively, indicating that most of the year is frost-free. The highest temperature recorded was on September 30, 2020, and the next day, the all-time record was broken again with . The lowest temperature ever recorded was on June 15, 1979.

Education

* National University of the Northeast * University of Cuenca del Plata

Sister cities

Corrientes is twinned with: * Encarnación, Paraguay * Estepa, Spain

In fiction

The

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

spy novel Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelligen ...

The Honorary Consul ''The Honorary Consul'' is a British thriller novel by Graham Greene, published in 1973. Greene considered it one of his favourite works. It is set at the run-up to Argentina's 'Dirty War' in the early 1970s. Plot summary The story is set in ...

'' (1973) takes place in Corrientes.

Gallery

File:Norte_de_la_Ciudad_de_Corrientes.jpg, Corrientes, Argentina File:Vista_aérea_hacia_la_Playa_Arazaty.jpg, View of the Corrientes waterfront (Playa Arazaty) File:Conjunto_Urbano_Plaza_25_de_Mayo_08.JPG, Downtown Corrientes, Argentina File:Corrientes_Montage.jpg, Corrientes, Argentina File:Punta_San_Sebastía.jpg, Saint Sebastian Point, Corrientes, Argentina File:Plaza 25 de mayo Corrientes.jpeg, May 25 square, Corrientes File:Palacio San Martín Corrientes.jpeg, The Provincial Ministry of the Economy File:Iglesia_Catedral,_Corrientes.jpg, Corrientes Cathedral, Argentina File:Lontra longicaudis 4.jpeg, River otter and toy, Corrientes Zoo

Sports

The city's main football teams are the: Huracán Corrientes,

Boca Unidos Club Atlético Boca Unidos (mostly known simply as Boca Unidos) is an Argentine football and basketball club from Corrientes Province. The football squad currently plays in the Primera B Nacional, the second division of Argentine football leagu ...

, and Deportivo Mandiyú.

References

External links

* MCC *
Sights
(English)

{{Authority control Populated places established in 1588 Populated places in Corrientes Province Capitals of Argentine provinces Paraná River