Bolivian Argentines (
Quechua: ''Buliwyanu Arhintinapi'', ), sometimes called Boligauchos, are
Argentine citizens of predominantly or total
Bolivian
Bolivian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Bolivia
** Bolivian people
** Demographics of Bolivia
** Culture of Bolivia
* SS Bolivian, SS ''Bolivian'', later SS ''Alfios'', a British-built standard cargo ship
{{disambiguation ...
descent or
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
-born people who immigrated to
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
. In recent decades, Bolivia has become one of the main sources of immigration in Argentina, making Bolivians one of the largest
Hispanic America
Hispanic America ( or ), historically known as Spanish America () or Castile (historical region), Castilian America (), is the Spanish-speaking countries and territories of the Americas. In all of these countries, Spanish language, Spanish is th ...
n immigrant groups in Argentina, along with
Paraguayans
Paraguayans () are the citizens of Paraguay.
Though the majority of Paraguayans reside in Paraguay, significant communities have been established in multiple countries, most noticeably Argentina, Spain, United States, Brazil.
History
The first ...
,
Peruvians
Peruvians (''/peruanas'') are the citizens of Peru. What is now Peru has been inhabited for several millennia by cultures such as the Caral before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Peruvian population decreased from an estimated 5–9 ...
and
Venezuelans
Venezuelans ( Spanish: ''venezolanos'') are the citizens identified with the country of Venezuela. This connection may be through citizenship, descent or cultural. For most Venezuelans, many or all of these connections exist and are the source ...
.
In Argentina, at the beginning of the 21st century, lies the world's largest Bolivian community outside Bolivia. The 2001 census recorded 233,464 legal Bolivians residing in Argentina, in equal parts for women and men. This is due in large part to economic abundance, the favorable opportunities which immigrants have in Argentina, and the healthcare and quality of life.
The
Permanent Assembly for Human Rights of Bolivia considers that there are over 3 million Bolivian citizens living in different foreign countries. Of these, migration to Argentina accounts for 73% of the total, being the largest Bolivian diaspora group abroad. Today, it is estimated that more than 338.000 Bolivians reside in Argentina.
Most Bolivians reside in
Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires (, GBA), also known as the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (, AMBA), refers to the urban agglomeration comprising the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of B ...
, especially in
La Matanza,
Morón,
Tres de Febrero and
Escobar ''
partidos''. Within the City of Buenos Aires, they reside mainly in the neighbourhoods of Flores, Villa Soldati, Villa Lugano, Liniers and Nueva Pompeya.
There are also important Bolivian communities in the provinces of
Salta
Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Salta Province, the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the List of cities in Argentina, 7th most-populous ...
,
Jujuy and
Tucumán. Moreover, about 50,000 Bolivians reside in the provinces of
Neuquén
Neuquén (; ) is the capital city of the Argentine province of Neuquén and of the Confluencia Department, located in the east of the province. It occupies a strip of land west of the confluence of the Limay and Neuquén rivers which form t ...
and
Río Negro in the
Patagonia
Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...
Region.
History
Bolivian immigration to Argentina has been constant since colonial times. Both countries were under
Spanish rule as part of the
Viceroyalty of Peru
The Viceroyalty of Peru (), officially known as the Kingdom of Peru (), was a Monarchy of Spain, Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in ...
and then the
Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata or Viceroyalty of Buenos Aires ( or Virreinato de Buenos Aires or ) meaning "River of the Silver", also called the "Viceroyalty of River Plate" in some scholarly writings, in southern South America, was ...
until the
Spanish American wars of independence
The Spanish American wars of independence () took place across the Spanish Empire during the early 19th century. The struggles in both hemispheres began shortly after the outbreak of the Peninsular War, forming part of the broader context of the ...
.
During colonial times, much of Argentine territory was a link between Buenos Aires and
Upper Peru
Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to th ...
(present-day
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
).
20th century

In the early 20th century, Bolivian immigration to Argentina was heading Argentine north to work in the harvest season of
sugarcane
Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...
and
snuff. From the '50s it was constituted a significant part of the market related to the tomato,
peppers and
bananas
A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – berry (botany), botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa (genus), Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called pla ...
, among others, in northern Argentina. During the 1960s and 1970s they were present at harvest and other crops in the west of the country and began to maintain a permanent presence in the city of Buenos Aires standing out in the horticultural work. Since then, Bolivians are found throughout the country.
The first migration wave of the modern era was held in 1940 after the ease of entry that gave the Argentine government engaged in the sugar crops of Salta and Jujuy, in the 1960s they moved to the province of Mendoza to collect the fruit and vegetables, or for collecting snuff leaves. After that, many moved to Buenos Aires to work as laborers, masons, and so many other jobs.
Some also moved to southern lands such as
Comodoro Rivadavia
Comodoro Rivadavia (), often shortened to Comodoro ( ), is a city in the Patagonian Provinces of Argentina, province of Chubut Province, Chubut in southern Argentina, located on the San Jorge Gulf, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, at the foot of th ...
, and north of the province of Chubut because of the oil "boom".
During the
Falklands War
The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...
() in 1982, some 25,000 Bolivians living in northern Argentina, mainly in the
province of Salta, expressed their decision to act as volunteers in the defense of the islands in support of Argentina.
21st century
At the beginning of the 21st century, Argentina is home to the world's largest Bolivian community. The 2001 census recorded 233,464 legal Bolivians in Argentina in equal parts for women and men.
Bolivian immigrants in Argentina found a place to work, progress, and help their families. Thousands of Bolivians have joined the Argentine everyday life, contributing in areas as diverse as construction, education, health, sports and music areas. In addition, elements of
Bolivian cuisine have become more popular in some areas where the Bolivian community is remarkable.
Notable Bolivian Argentines
*
Cornelio Saavedra, military officer and statesman, president of the
Primera Junta
The Primera Junta ("First Junta") or ''Junta Provisional Gubernativa de las Provincias del Río de la Plata'' ("Provisional Governing Junta of the Provinces of the Río de la Plata"), is the most common name given to the first government of what ...
.
*
Juana Azurduy de Padilla
Juana Azurduy de Padilla (July 12, 1780 – May 25, 1862) was a guerrilla military leader from Chuquisaca, Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (now Sucre, Bolivia).Pallis, Michael “Slaves of Slaves: The Challenge of Latin American Women” (Lo ...
, Latin American guerilla military leader.
*
José Severo Malabia, statesman, lawyer and a representative to the
Congress of Tucumán
The Congress of Tucumán was the representative assembly, initially meeting in San Miguel de Tucumán, that declared the independence of the United Provinces of South America (modern-day Argentina, Uruguay, part of Bolivia) on July 9, 1816, ...
.
*
Tarateño Rojas,
singer, musician and composer.
*
María Eugenia Estenssoro
María Eugenia Estenssoro (born 15 April 1958) is a Bolivian Argentine politician, journalist and activist for women's rights. She represented the city of Buenos Aires in the Argentine Senate from 2007 to 2013.
Estenssoro was born in La Paz. He ...
, politician, journalist and activist for women's rights.
*
Stephanie Beatriz
Stephanie Beatriz Bischoff Alvizuri (born February 10, 1981) is an American actress. She is known for playing Detective Rosa Diaz in the Fox/ NBC comedy series ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'' (2013–2021), Quiet in the Peacock action-comedy series '' ...
, actress.
See also
*
Argentina–Bolivia relations
*
Immigration to Argentina
The history of immigration to Argentina can be divided into several major stages:
* Spanish colonization of the Americas, Spanish colonization between the :es:Siglo XVI, 16th and :es:Siglo XVIII, 18th century, mostly male, largely assimilat ...
*
Racism in Argentina
*
Paraguayan Argentines
*
Peruvian Argentines
References
Further reading
* Regina G. Schlüter, ''Turismo y Patrimonio en el siglo XXI'', CIET, Buenos Aires, 2002.
* José Moreno Páez, "La Argentina es aplaudida en el mundo entero por sus políticas migratorias". UNASUR, Buenos Aires, 2008.
* Eduardo Muñoz Pernía, "Argentina mira hacia el futuro de la integración latinoamericana, marcando el ejemplo, con el plan Patria Grande". Torremolinos, Madrid, 2006.
{{Bolivian diaspora