Basque Argentines are

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

citizens of

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

descent or people from Basque residing in Argentina. Basque Argentines are one of the largest Basque diaspora groups in the world. Basque settlement in Argentina took place in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when many immigrants arrived in Argentina from the Basque Country.

Basque people The Basques ( or ; ; ; ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Basques are indigenous to, and primarily i ...

had already played a large part in the conquest and development of Argentina as a Spanish colony and in its independence, including

Juan de Garay Juan de Garay (1528–1583) was a Spanish conquistador. Garay's birthplace is disputed. Some say it was in the city of Junta de Villalba de Losa in Castile, while others argue he was born in the area of Orduña (Basque Country). There's ...

, the founder of the capital Buenos Aires.

History

Between 1857 and 1940 more than 2 million Spanish people emigrated to Argentina, mostly from Galicia and the Basque Country, which is a region in the western

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

mountains straddling parts of France and Spain. Both Spanish and French Basques (including

Navarra Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

ns) arrived in Argentina as part of a wider

Basque diaspora The Basque diaspora is the name given to describe people of Basque origin living outside their traditional homeland on the borders between Spain and France. Many Basques have left the Basque Country for other parts of the globe for economic and ...

. Today, around 10% of the Argentine population are of Basque descent. The destination of the majority of Basque emigrants was Argentina, with Basque culture contributing much to Argentine culture.

Basque cultural influences

There are Basque cultural centres ('' Euskal Etxeak'') in most large cities, as well as pelota courts and Basque language schools. Buenos Aires has a major Basque centre, the

Laurak Bat The current Basque coat of arms () is the official coat of arms of the Basque Country, Autonomous community of Spain. It consists of a '' party per cross'' representing the three historical territories of Álava, Gipuzkoa and Biscay, as well as a ...

, and a cultural foundation, the Juan de Garay Institute, named after the city's Basque founder. Politicians from the Basque Country

autonomous community The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Sp ...

of Spain, including the ''

lehendakari The President of the Basque Government (, ), usually known in the Basque language as the Lehendakari (, ), is the head of government of the Basque Autonomous Community. The lehendakari leads the executive branch of the regional government. T ...

'', are regular visitors to the country, and the Basque government has diplomatic representation in Argentina, currently

María Elisa Díaz de Mendibil María Elisa Díaz de Mendibil Gómez de Segura is the representative of the government of the Basque Country Autonomous Community of Spain in Argentina. Biography Born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Díaz de Mendibil studied social work at the Universi ...

Basque heritage

Basque festival in Buenos Aires August 2011

Many places have been given Basque names, including the city of Ezeiza and its surrounding partido, best known as the location of Argentina's main international airport, Ministro Pistarini. The seaside resort of

Necochea Necochea is a port and beach city in the southwest of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast, along the mouth of the Quequén Grande River, from Buenos Aires and southwest of Mar del Plata. T ...

is a major centre of Basque culture and also has a Basque name. Several

Presidents of Argentina Argentina has had many different types of Head of state, heads of state, as well as many different types of government. During Pre-Columbian Argentina, pre-Columbian times, most of the territories that today form Argentina were inhabited by Indi ...

have been of Basque descent, including

Justo José de Urquiza Justo José de Urquiza y García (; October 18, 1801 – April 11, 1870) was an Argentine general and politician who served as president of the Argentine Confederation from 1854 to 1860. Life Justo José de Urquiza y García was bor ...

José Evaristo Uriburu José Félix Evaristo de Uriburu y Álvarez de Arenales (19 November 1831 – 23 October 1914) was President of Argentina from 23 January 1895 to 12 October 1898. He was an adept diplomat; participating as arbiter on the peace negotiation ...

Hipólito Yrigoyen Juan Hipólito del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Yrigoyen (12 July 1852 – 3 July 1933) was an Argentine politician of the Radical Civic Union who served as President of Argentina from 1916 to 1922 and again from 1928 until his overthrow in ...

José Félix Uriburu José Félix Benito Uriburu (20 July 186829 April 1932) was an Argentine military officer and politician, he was the President of the Provisional Government of Argentina, ousting the successor to President Hipólito Yrigoyen by means of a ...

and

Pedro Eugenio Aramburu Pedro Eugenio Aramburu Silveti (May 21, 1903 – June 1, 1970) was an Argentine Army general and the ''de facto'' President of Argentina from 1955 to 1958. He was a major figure behind the ''Revolución Libertadora'', the military coup against J ...

, not to mention other figures, notably Eva Perón,

Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...

Maxima Zorreguieta Maxima may refer to: People * Maxima of Rome, early Christian saint and martyr * Maxima of Lisbon, early Christian saint and martyr * Queen Máxima of the Netherlands (born 1971) * Máxima Acuña, Peruvian activist * Maximilla, also known as M ...

and well-known

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

players as

Julio Olarticoechea Julio Jorge Olarticoechea (born 18 October 1958) is an Argentine former footballer who played as a defender. At international level, he represented Argentina at the 1986 and the 1990 World Cups, winning the former edition of the tournament. Ol ...

Sergio Goycochea Sergio Javier Goycochea (; born 17 October 1963) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is best known for helping his country reach the 1990 FIFA World Cup Final with his penalty kick saves. Club career ...

Gonzalo Higuaín Gonzalo Gerardo Higuaín (; born 10 December 1987) is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. Nicknamed ''El Pipita'' or ''Pipa,'' he is considered to be one of the best strikers of his generation and was a prolific striker kn ...

. There are an estimated 15,000 Basque surnames in Argentina.

Notable people

* Alfredo Arrieta, military and politician, brother-in-law of

Juan Domingo Perón ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philip ...

. *

, a major figure of the Cuban Revolution. *

, professional footballer who plays for MLS club Inter Miami. *

Aníbal Ibarra Aníbal Ibarra (born March 1, 1958) is an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as mayor of Buenos Aires. Biography Ibarra was born in Lomas de Zamora, a district located in the southern region of Greater Buenos Aires. His father was a P ...

, lawyer and politician who served as mayor of Buenos Aires from 2000 to 2006. *

Eva Perón María Eva Duarte de Perón (; ; 7 May 1919 – 26 July 1952), better known as Eva Perón or by the nickname Evita (), was an Argentine politician, activist, actress, and philanthropist who served as First Lady of Argentina from June 1946 until ...

, the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. *

, two-time President of Argentina. *

, Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, married to King Willem-Alexander. *

, former President "de facto" of Argentina *

, 1990 World Cup starting goalkeeper of Argentina *

, former football player *

Jorge Burruchaga Jorge Luis Burruchaga (; born 9 October 1962), nicknamed ''Burru'', is an Argentine association football coach and former professional football player. He played both as an attacking midfielder and forward and scored the winning goal in the fi ...

, former football player * Mauro Burruchaga, football player *

Pablo Zabaleta Pablo Javier Zabaleta Girod (; born 16 January 1985) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player ...

, football player for West Ham United. *

Gabriel Goity Gabriel Goity (born c. 1960) is an Argentine theatrical, film and television actor. He was born in the small Argentine town of El Palomar. Biography Goity left Palomar and moved to Buenos Aires with his family. His grandparents in particular ...

, Actor *

Macarena Achaga Macarena Achaga Figueroa (; born March 5, 1992), known professionally as Macarena Achaga, is an Argentine model, actress, singer, and television hostess. In 2012, she debuted as an actress on the Mexican television series '' Miss XV'' and was a me ...

, TV personality *

Ezequiel Garay Ezequiel Marcelo Garay González (; born 10 October 1986) is an Argentine former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, central defender. He started his career with Newell's Ol ...

, footballer * Magdalena Mouján, mathematician and science fiction writer *

Adolfo Zumelzú Adolfo Bernabé Zumelzú (5 January 1902 – 29 March 1973) was a football player from Argentina. Club career He played club football for Tigre and Sportivo Palermo. International career South American Championship Zumelzú represented ...

, 1928 Olympian in Argentina football team * Olga Zubarry, actress *

Jorge Zorreguieta Jorge Horacio Zorreguieta Stefanini (28 January 1928 – 8 August 2017) was an Argentine politician who served as Secretary of Agriculture in the regime of General Jorge Rafael Videla. Zorreguieta was the father of Queen Máxima of the Netherla ...

, Minister of Agriculture during the Videla Regime *

Héctor Zelada Héctor Miguel Zelada Bertoqui (born 30 April 1957) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper. He started his career at Rosario Central but he played mostly in Mexico, for Club América. He was the third-choice goalkeeper for the Argentina side ...

, 1986 World Cup Winner * Héctor Aramburu, musician known as Atahualpa Yupanqui *

Rogelio Yrurtia Rogelio Yrurtia (December 6, 1879 – March 4, 1950) was a renowned Argentine sculptor of the Realist school. Life and work Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina to Basque immigrants in 1879, Rogelio Yrurtia enrolled in the local Society for the ...

, sculptor *

Bautista Ezcurra Bautista Ezcurra (born 21 April 1995) is an Argentine professional rugby union player. He currently plays for FC Grenoble in the French Pro D2. He was selected for 's sevens squad for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Ezcurra was named in the traini ...

, rugby union player * Felipe Ezcurra, rugby union player

References

{{Authority control *

Spanish diaspora in Argentina French diaspora in Argentina

History

Basque cultural influences

Basque heritage

Notable people

See also

References