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Argentina has a racially and ethnically diverse population.^[1] The territory of what today is Argentina was first inhabited by numerous indigenous peoples. The first white settlers came during the period of Spanish colonization, beginning in the 16th century. The Spaniards imported African slaves, who would go on to become the first Afro-Argentines. Following independence from Spain in the 19th century and well into the 20th century, numerous migration waves took place, with Argentina being the second most popular destination for migrants in the early 20th century, after the United States. Most of these migrants came from Europe.^[2][3]

Most modern-day Argentines are descendants of these 19th and 20th century immigrants, with about 97% of the population being of full or partial European ancestry,^[4][5] while an estimated 56% have some indigenous or mestizo ancestry,^[6][7] and 4-5% have some African or mulatto ancestry.^[8][9] In the 2010 census , some 955,032 Argentines (2.38% of the population) identified as indigenous or first-generation descendants of indigenous peoples, while 149,493 (0.37% of the population) identified as Afro-Argentine.^[10][11]

In addition, Argentines of Arab (mostly Syrian and Lebanese) descent constitute a significant minority, and the Jewish population is the largest in all Latin America and the seventh largest in the world.^[12] In the formative years of the Argentine Republic, a period marked by efforts to foster national unity and identity, assimilation played a significant role in shaping the cultural landscape. This phenomenon particularly influenced immigrant groups, including the Syro-Lebanese, encouraging them to ideologically self-identify as "Argentine." The term "Argentine" during this period predominantly connoted a Spanish-speaking, Catholic, and fair-skinned national identity. Author Ibrahim Hallar, a Lebanese-Argentine, delves into this complex interplay of assimilation and identity in his 1963 work, "El gaucho." Hallar notes that, during this era, the pressure to assimilate was evident, with certain immigrant groups being more encouraged to blend in than others. According to Hallar, only Spaniards, Italians, and Lebanese were perceived as having mixed with the native population. Civantos (2006) provides a critical analysis of Hallar's assertions, pointing out that grouping Lebanese together with the Spanish and Italians who intermarried and had offspring implies Hallar's Lebanese community's claims to European-ness, and perhaps more explicitly, to whiteness. The assimilation process, as observed by Civantos, becomes a nuanced journey wherein the Syro-Lebanese community strategically positions itself within the broader Argentine identity spectrum.^[13]

Indigenous peoples continue to have significant populations in the country's north-west (Quechua, Diaguita, Kolla, Aymara); north-east (Guaraní, Mocoví, Toba, Wichí); and in the south or Patagonia (Mapuche, Tehuelche). Asian peoples have increasing minorities in some Buenos Aires neighborhoods and are expanding to other large Argentine cities. More recent migratory flows have come from other Latin American countries, with Paraguayans, Bolivians, Peruvians and Venezuelans making up the bulk of Argentina's modern-day immigrant communities.^[14][15]

Ethnic groups

Europeans

Neither official census data nor statistically significant studies exist on the precise amount or percentage of Argentines of European descent today. The Argentine government recognizes the different communities, but Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC) does not conduct ethnic/racial censuses, nor includes questions about ethnicity.^[19][20] The Census conducted on 27 October 2010, did include questions on Indigenous peoples (complementing the survey performed in 2005) and on Afro-descendants.^[19]

Arrival of the European immigrants

The number and composition of the population was stable until 1853, when the national government, after passing a constitution, started a campaign to attract European immigration to populate the country. This state policy lasted several decades. At first the number of immigrants was modest compared to other countries such as the United States (though the number of immigrants was steadily increasing as they moved to the rural areas to settle and to found colonias like those of Italian, German, Swiss, or French origin), but in the 1870s, due to the economic crisis in Europe, it started to increase, reaching an extremely high rate between 1890 and 1930. Unofficial records show that, during the 1860s, 160,000 immigrants arrived in Argentina, while in the 1880s the net number increased to 841,000, almost doubling the population of the country in that decade.

Between 1857 and 1950, 6,611,000 European immigrants arrived in Argentina, making it the country with the second biggest immigration wave in the world, only second to the United States with 27 million, and ahead of such other areas of new settlement such as Canada, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Venezuela, Mexico and Uruguay and permanently changing the ethnography of Argentina.^[2][3]

Immigrants arrived through the port of Buenos Aires and many stayed in the capital or within Buenos Aires Province and this still happens today. In 1895, immigrants accounted for 52% of the population in the capital, and 31% in the province of Buenos Aires (some provinces of the littoral, such as Santa Fe, had about 40%, and the Patagonian provinces had about 50%).

Waves of immigrants from European countries arrived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Over 30 percent of the country's population was born overseas by 1914, and half of the population in Buenos Aires and Rosario was foreign-born.^[21][22] Over 80% of the Argentine population, per the 1914 Census, were immigrants, their children or grandchildren.^[23]

The Hotel de Inmigrantes, built in 1906 to accommodate the 100,000 to 200,000 yearly arrivals at the Port of Buenos Aires, was made a National Historic Monument.

Italians

Italian immigration to Argentina began in the 19th century, just after Argentina won its independence from Spain. Argentine culture has significant connections to Italian culture, in terms of language, customs and traditions.^[24]

Italians became firmly established throughout Argentina, with the greatest concentrations in the city of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province, Santa Fe Province, Entre Ríos Province, Córdoba Province, Tucumán Province, La Pampa Province, and the nearby country of Uruguay.

There are many reasons for the Italian immigration to Argentina: Italy was enduring economic problems caused mainly by the unification of the Italian states into one nation. The country was impoverished, unemployment was rampant, certain areas were overpopulated, and Italy was subject to significant political turmoil. Italians saw in Argentina a chance to build for themselves a brand new life.

The Italian population in Argentina is the third largest in the world, and the second largest (after Brazil) outside of Italy,^[25] More than 20 million people (47% of Argentina's population according to Argentine government websites).^[26][27] Italians form a majority of the population of Argentina and neighboring Uruguay: up to two-thirds have some Italian background. Among Latin American countries, only Brazil has more people of Italian descent (28 million, approximately 15 percent of Brazil's total population).

Croats

Croats number of 200,000 in Argentina, settling primarily in Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, Chaco, and Patagonia. At the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, there were over 133 settlements. Many Croatian Argentines can trace their ancestry to Dalmatia and the Croatian Littoral. Many Croats came after Nikola Mihanovich developed the merchant marine.

Germans

Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Ethnic_groups_of_Argentina
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