Puerto Madryn (; cy, Porth Madryn), also known as ''Madryn'', is a city in the

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

of Chubut in

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 ...

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 ...

. It is the capital of the Viedma Department, and has about 93,995 inhabitants according to the last census in 2010. Puerto Madryn is protected by the

Golfo Nuevo Golfo Nuevo (Spanish for "New Gulf") is a body of water formed by the Península Valdés and Punta Ninfas in the province of Chubut in the Argentine Patagonia. It is located southwest of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Puerto Madryn is its major seap ...

, which is formed by the

Península Valdés The Valdes Peninsula (Spanish: ''Península Valdés'') is a peninsula into the Atlantic Ocean in the Biedma Department of north-east Chubut Province, Argentina. Around in size (not taking into account the isthmus of Carlos Ameghino which connects ...

and the

Punta Ninfas Punta Ninfas (Spanish, "Nymphs Point") is found in Chubut Province, Patagonia, Argentina. A promontory into the Atlantic Ocean, it encloses one side of the Golfo Nuevo, with Península Valdés opposite almost enclosing the circular gulf. The Po ...

. It is an important centre for tourists visiting the natural attractions of the Península Valdés and the coast. A new shopping mall in the city centre has helped tourism significantly, making Puerto Madryn a more attractive place for both international and domestic tourists visiting

. It is twinned with

Nefyn Nefyn (, archaically anglicised as Nevin) is both a small town and a community on the northwest coast of the Llŷn Peninsula, Gwynedd, Wales. Nefyn is popular with visitors for its sandy beach, and has one substantial hotel. The A497 road termi ...

, a small town on the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn or , ) extends into the Irish Sea from North West Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and historic region and local authority area of Gwynedd. Mu ...

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

, the result of its enduring link with Welsh culture since the

Welsh settlement in Argentina Y Wladfa (, "The Colony"), also occasionally Y Wladychfa Gymreig (, "The Welsh Settlement"), refers to the establishment of settlements by Welsh immigrants in Patagonia, beginning in 1865, mainly along the coast of the lower Chubut Valley. I ...

. The first of a two-Test tour to Argentina by the

Wales national rugby union team The Wales national rugby union team ( cy, Tîm rygbi'r undeb cenedlaethol Cymru) represents Wales in men's international rugby union. Its governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the same year that Wales played thei ...

was played in 2006 in Puerto Madryn, a 27–25 win for

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 ...

. Puerto Madryn is home to two

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

clubs;

Club Social y Atlético Guillermo Brown Club Social y Atlético Guillermo Brown, mostly known as Guillermo Brown or Brown de Puerto Madryn, is an Argentine sports club from Puerto Madryn in Chubut Province. The football team currently plays in the Primera B Nacional. History The clu ...

, who play in

Nacional B Primera Nacional (usually called simply Nacional B, in English "National B Division", and known as Primera B Nacional until the 2019–20 season) is the second division of the Argentine football league system. The competition is made up of 37 tea ...

and

Deportivo Madryn Club Social y Deportivo Madryn (usually called simply Deportivo Madryn) is an Argentine sports club. Its home town is Puerto Madryn, in the Chubut Province. Although other sports are practised there, the club is mostly known for both its footb ...

that currently play in

Torneo Argentino B Torneo Argentino B was one of two leagues that form the fourth level of the Argentine football league system, made up of 100+ teams playing within eight regional zones across Argentina. The other league at level four wasand still isthe Primera C ...

. A basketball team, Deportivo Puerto Madryn, plays in the

Liga Nacional de Básquetbol Liga or LIGA may refer to: People * Līga (name), a Latvian female given name * Luciano Ligabue, more commonly known as Ligabue or ''Liga'', Italian rock singer-songwriter Sports * Liga ACB, men's professional basketball league in Spain * Lig ...

(LNB). Their home arena is known as the Deportivo Puerto Madryn Arena.

El Tehuelche Airport El Tehuelche Airport ( es, link=no, Aeropuerto El Tehuelche, Welsh: ''Maes Awyr El Tehuelche'') is an airport northwest of Puerto Madryn, a city on Golfo Nuevo in the Chubut Province of Argentina. The airport is inland from the gulf, on the 3 ...

is located 10 km (6 miles) northwest of the city centre. Commercial flights 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 ...

Ushuaia Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of nearly 75,000 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, Ushuaia claims the title of world's southern ...

, and other Argentinian cities are available. Most tourists fly into

Trelew Trelew (, from cy, tref "town" and the name of the founder, Lewis Jones) is a city in the eastern part of the Chubut Province of Argentina. Located in Patagonia, the city is the largest and most populous in the low valley of the Chubut River, wi ...

Airport as flights into Puerto Madryn are restricted as a result of environmental concerns.

Geography and climate

Puerto Madryn is situated in Chubut on the

, which is formed by the

Valdés Peninsula The Valdes Peninsula (Spanish: ''Península Valdés'') is a peninsula into the Atlantic Ocean in the Biedma Department of north-east Chubut Province, Argentina. Around in size (not taking into account the isthmus of Carlos Ameghino which connect ...

and

. Puerto Madryn features a

cold desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

''BWk''), with an annual precipitation of between 150 and 200 mm (6" to 8").

History

The town was founded on 28 July 1865, when 150 Welsh immigrants arriving aboard the

clipper A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. Clippers were generally narrow for their length, small by later 19th century standards, could carry limited bulk freight, and had a large total sail area. "C ...

Mimosa ''Mimosa'' is a genus of about 590 species of herbs and shrubs, in the mimosoid clade of the legume family Fabaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek word (''mimos''), an "actor" or "mime", and the feminine suffix -''osa'', "resembl ...

'' named the natural port ''Porth Madryn'' in honour of Sir Love Jones-Parry, whose estate in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

was called "Madryn". Conditions were difficult and the settlers had to dig irrigation ditches for their first crops. The settlement grew as a result of the building of the Central Chubut Railway by

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

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 ...

, and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

immigrants. This line, opened in 1889, linked the town to

via the lower Chubut River valley. Puerto Madryn was the port to which Argentine

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

captured in the

Falklands Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...

during the 1982 war were repatriated on the vessels

SS Canberra SS ''Canberra'' was an ocean liner, which later operated on cruises, in the P&O fleet from 1961 to 1997. She was built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland at a cost of £17 million. The ship was named on 17 March 19 ...

and

MV Norland The ''Norland'' was a Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, P&O RORO, roll-on/roll-off ferry operating between Kingston upon Hull in Yorkshire, United Kingdom, UK, and Rotterdam Europoort, Netherlands, and then Zeebrugge, Belgium. The 2 ...

, which sailed from

Port Stanley Stanley (; also known as Port Stanley) is the capital city of the Falkland Islands. It is located on the island of East Falkland, on a north-facing slope in one of the wettest parts of the islands. At the 2016 census, the city had a popula ...

on 18 June 1982.

Twin towns

* Puerto Montt,

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

''Ciudades y Provincias argentinas hermanadas con contrapartes extranjeras''
en Asuntos Federales y Electorales de la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores de Argentina * Paola,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Pisco Pisco is a colorless or yellowish-to-amber colored brandy produced in winemaking regions of Peru and Chile. Made by distilling fermented grape juice into a high-proof spirit, it was developed by 16th-century Spanish settlers as an alternative ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Ciudad del Carmen Ciudad del Carmen is a city in the southwest of the Mexican state of Campeche. Ciudad del Carmen is located at on the southwest of Carmen Island, which stands in the Laguna de Términos on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. , Ciudad del Carmen ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Gallery

File:Cerca de Puerto Madryn.jpg, View of Puerto Madryn from the bay with a southern right whale. File:Puerto Madryn, Patagonia.jpg, Puerto Madryn coast. File:Pingüinera en Puerto Madryn.jpg, Penguin population near the coast. File:Bandera de Argentina - Punta Cuevas, Chubut (2).JPG,

Flag of Argentina The national flag of the Argentine Republic is a triband (flag), triband, composed of three equally wide horizontal bands coloured light blue and white. There are multiple interpretations on the reasons for those colors. The flag was created by ...

in Puerto Madryn. File:Flag of the Welsh colony in Patagonia.svg, Flag flown to recognise the original Welsh settlement of the area

Notes

References

External links

Project-Hiraeth – Documents the stories of the Welsh colony in Patagonia, Argentina through film, text and illustration.
*
Official website
{{Authority control Populated coastal places in Argentina Populated places established in 1865 Populated places in Chubut Province Port settlements in Argentina Welsh settlement in Patagonia Cities in Argentina