A Eastern Republic of Uruguay (Spanish: República Oriental del Uruguay) is a little united states located in southern South America. These are bordered by Brazil to a north, the Uruguay River to the west, the estuary of the Río de la Plata (literally "River of Silver", however usually known inside English when "River Plate") to the southwest, by owning Argentina on a other bank of both, & eventually the South Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. All about 1-half of its population sleep in a capital & big city, Montevideo.

A united states is a 2nd-smallest united states inside South United states of america & is one of the virtually all politically & economically horse barn.

History
Independent article: History of Uruguay

A title "Uruguay" comes from either Guaraní, the language of the native humans of the area. It means "river of the painted birds."

A number one Europeans arrived in the area in the early 16th century. Two Spain and Portugal pursued the colonization of Uruguay, with a Spanish at length gaining control. A new capital, Montevideo, was founded in the early 18th century and became a competitor to Buenos Aires across the Río delaware la Plata. Montevideo, but, was thought of as the military center for the Spanish empire, when Buenos Aires was a commercial center.

In the early 19th century, independence movements sprung up through South America, including Uruguay (then called a Banda Oriental, or even "Eastern Area", on to the front yard east of the Río first state la Plata). Uruguayan territory was contested between a nascent states of Brazil and Argentina. Brazil annexed a region around 1821 under the title of Provincia Cisplatina, however the uprising began in August 25, 1825, after which Uruguay became an independent united states by having a Treaty of Montevideo in 1828.

A original people of Charrúa Indians was gradually decimated complete 3 centuries, culminating inside 11 April 1831 in the mass killing at Salsipuedes, which was led by General Fructuoso Rivera, Uruguay's first president. Fallowing that date the couple remaining Charrúas were dispersed & the viable Charrúa culture was a tool of the past, although Charrúa blood however diarrhea in the veins of numbers of Uruguayans now following of extensive Charrúa-Spanish intermixing when you took compound days. 4 Charrúas — Senaqué, a leader Vaimaca Pirú, a warrior Tacuabé & his married woman Guyunusa — were taken to Paris around 1833 to exist when displayed as circus attractions.

In the latter a share of the 19th century, Uruguay participated in the War of the Triple Alliance against Paraguay.

Uruguay so had the series of elective & appointive presidents & saw conflicts by using neighboring states, political & economic fluctuations & modernization, & big influx of immigrants, mostly from either Europe. A function of President José Batlle y Ordóñez made Uruguay an advanced nation by having the complex welfare system; for most of the 20th century Uruguay get on par sustaining European nations. Due to its advanced structure & its stable democracy, Uruguay come to become referred to as "the Switzerland of the Americas".

A Uruguayan economy relies largely in farming exportation. The world wars brought prosperity when Uruguayan beef & grain attend feed the war-ravaged Europe. Globe food cost dropped precipitously resulting a prevent of WWII, which triggered years of decline for the Uruguayan economy. Per 1960's, a stable structure began to weaken when a economy spiralled. the food & drug administration began losing popular trend lines when students, workers and lower-class families felt the infliction of an economy unable to adapt to a post-agricultural globe economy. A Tupamaros, a radical left-winger class action, responded to a crisis by using violence, which triggered government repression that ended using the suspension of single rights per president, Jorge Pacheco Areco, and his successor, Juan María Bordaberry. Eventually, inside 1973, a army seized power, ushering inside Xi years of military caesarism inside what was when one of the virtually all stable democracies in the region. Within 1984, democracy was finally restored sustaining a election of Julio María Sanguinetti.

Politics
Independent article: Politics of Uruguay

Uruguay's Constitution of 1967 created a hard presidency, subject to legislative and judicial checks. A president, who is each head of state and head of government, is elected by popular vote for a 5-season term, using a vice president elected on the equivalent ticket. Thirteen cabinet ministers, appointed by the president, head executive departments.

A parliament is the bicameral General Assembly or even Asamblea General, which consists of the 30-member senate (Cámara de Senadores), presided assibilate per vice president of the republic, & the 99-member Chamber of Representatives (Cámara diamond state Representantes). Members for two houses come elected by popular vote for the 5-month term.

A state supreme court is the Supreme Court; beneath it come appellant & inferior court, & justices of the peace. Additionally, there are electoral & administrative ("contentious") courts, an accounts court, & the military justice rules.

For virtually all of Uruguay's history, a Colorado & National parties keep close at hand alternated inside power. A elections of 2004, however, brought a Encuentro Progresista-Frente Amplio-Nueva Mayoría, a coalition of various left-of-center parties, to power by having majorities within two houses of parliament & a election of President Tabaré Vázquez Rosas by an absolute majority.

Departments
Independent article: Departments of Uruguay

Uruguay consists of Nineteen departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):

Artigas Canelones Cerro Largo Colonia Durazno Flores Florida Lavalleja Maldonado Montevideo Paysandú Río Negro Rivera Rocha Salto San José Soriano Tacuarembó Treinta y Tres

Geography
Independent article: Geography of Uruguay

Uruguay is the 2nd-smallest united states within South America, after Suriname. A landscape features mostly rolling plains & moo hill ranges (cuchillas) by using the fertile coastal lowland, virtually all of it grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising. A greatest point in the united states is the Cerro Catedral at 514 m. To the southwest is the Río de la Plata (River of Silver), a estuary of the Uruguay River, which forms a american border, & the Paraná River, that does not rerun across Uruguay itself. A just more major flow of any stream is the Río Negro. Many laguna come detected along a Atlantic coast.

A climate in Uruguay is temperate, but fairly warmly, when freezing temperatures come well-nigh unknown. A preponderantly flat landscape is besides somewhat vulnerable to rapid changes from either upwind fronts, likewise when to the pampero, a chili & once in a while violent wind blowing northerly from either a pampas plains in Argentina.

Enclaves and exclaves
There exists 1 Argentine enclave within Uruguayan territory: the island of Martín García (co-ordinates ). These are placed touching the confluence of the Paraná & Uruguay streams, lakes, and wells throughout, a mere klick within Uruguayan waters, astir Trey.V kilometre from either a Uruguayan coastline, touching a little city of Martín Chico (itself about midway between Nueva Palmira and Colonia).

An agreement reached by Argentina & Uruguay around 1973 reaffirmed Argentine jurisdiction over the island, ending a century-old dispute between them countries. Based on datthe from a terms of the agreement, Martín García is to exist as devoted alone to a natural preserve. Its front yard is astir Deuce km², & a people astir 200 souls.

Economy
Uruguay's economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a easily-lettered work force, & high levels of social outlay, also as a developed industrial sector. When averaging incubation of 5% annually within 1996–1998, in 1999–2001 the economy suffered from moo require within Argentina and Brazil, which together account for nearly half of Uruguay's exportation. Despite a harshness of the trade shocks, Uruguay's fiscal indicators remained extrthe stable than victims of its neighbours, a reflection of its firm reputation among investors & its investment-grade sovereign attach rating — one of merely deuce inside South Us. Inside recent years Uruguay has shifted virtually all of its energy into getting a commercial utilize of IT technologies & has get a leading exporter of package around Latin Us.

When occasionally area of a economy appeared to exist when resilient, a downswing got a far supplementary severe impact around Uruguayan citizens, as unemployment levels rose to to a higher degree twenty percent, very pay fell, the peso was devalued, & the percentage of Uruguayans in impoverishment reached virtually 40%. These worsening economic conditions played a a share successively popular opinion against the free market economic policies adopted by the last administrations in the Nineties, leading to popular rejection of proposals for privatization of the state petroleum company inside 2003 & of the state waterworks around 2004. A freshly elective Frente Amplio government, while pledging to prove my point payments in Uruguay's external debt, has besides promised to undertake a crash jobs computer program to attack the far flung problems of poorness & unemployment.

Demographics
Independent article: Demographics of Uruguay

As a Spanish-speaking country of Latin America, most Uruguayans part the Spanish cultural background, even though astir of these-quarter of the people is of Italian origin. Occasionally 88% of the people is of European descent, sustaining mestizos (8%) and blacks (4%) forming a just important ethnic minorities. Church & state come officially separated, by owning virtually all adhering to the Roman Catholic faith (66%), with little Protestant (2%) and Jewish (1%) communities, as well as a big nonprofessing class action (31%).

Uruguay is distinguished by its high literacy rate, large urban bourgeoisie, & comparatively possibly income distribution. When you took a retiring deuce decades, an forecasted 500,000 Uruguayans stand emigrated, chiefly to Argentina and Brazil. Following of the moo fertility rate, high life expectancy, and comparatively high rate of expatriation of immature population, Uruguay's people is quite matured.

Culture
Independent article: Culture of Uruguay

Eduardo Galeano, writer and social commentator notable throughout Latin America Jorge Majfud, Uruguayan writer List of Uruguayans Music of Uruguay Mario Benedetti, Uruguay's best-known novelist

Sports
Independent article: Sports in Uruguay

A virtually all popular sport within Uruguay is football (called fútbol in Spanish), & a united states has earned numerous honours in this sport, including gold ribbon at a 1924 and 1928 Olympics and two World Cups.

Rugby and basketball are also popular.

Miscellaneous topics

Communications in Uruguay Foreign relations of Uruguay Military of Uruguay Reporters without borders World-wide press freedom stock 2002: Rank 21 away from 139 countries (Three way tie) Transportation in Uruguay