Río de la Plata in relation to Uruguay and Argentina

A satellite view of the estuary

The Río de la Plata (Spanish: "Silver River") — which is often referred to in English-speaking countries as the River Plate (as in the Battle of the River Plate), or sometimes as the [La] Plata River — is the estuary formed by the combination of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River. Silver (ˈsɪlvɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol " Ag " (argentum from the Ancient Greek: ἀργήντος - argēntos gen English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States The Battle of the River Plate ( December 13, 1939) was the first major naval battle in World War II. An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open The Uruguay River (in Spanish, Río Uruguay, uɾuˈɣwaj in Portuguese, Rio Uruguai,) is a River in South This article is about the second-longest river in South America For the shorter river in Goiás, central Brazil see Paranã River The Paraná River It is a funnel-shaped indentation on the southeastern coastline of South America, extending 290 kilometres (180 mi) from the rivers' confluence to the Atlantic Ocean. South America is a Continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a Confluence, in Geography, describes the meeting of two or more Bodies of water.

Where the rivers join, it is 48 kilometres (30 mi) wide, and it runs to the southeast growing to 220 kilometres (137 mi) wide where it opens on the Atlantic Ocean, making it the widest estuary in the world. It forms part of the border between Argentina and Uruguay, with the major ports and capital cities of Buenos Aires in the southwest and Montevideo in the northeast. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Uruguay.(official full name in República Oriental del Uruguay;, Oriental Republic of Uruguay) is a country located in the southeastern part of South America Buenos Aires is the Capital and largest city of Argentina. It is geographically located on the southern shore of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern Montevideo (monteβi'ðeo is the largest city the capital and chief port of Uruguay. Isla Martín García, off the coast of Uruguay, is under Argentine sovereignty. Isla Martín García is an Argentine island off the Río de la Plata coast of Uruguay.

The basin drained by the main tributaries of the Río de la Plata (the Uruguay and Paraná, and the important Paraná tributary, the Paraguay) covers approximately one fifth of South America, including area in southeastern Bolivia, southern and central Brazil, the entire nation of Paraguay, most of Uruguay and northern Argentina. Missing rivers from Brazil Separate tributaries by zones and name them Political economical and social implications -->The Río de The Paraguay River ( Río Paraguay in Spanish, Rio Paraguai in Portuguese) is a major River in south central South America The Republic of Bolivia (República de Bolivia) named after Simón Bolívar, is a Landlocked country in central South America. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay ( Spanish: República del Paraguay; Guaraní: Tetã Paraguái) is one of the only An estimated 57 million cubic metres (2 billion cubic feet) of silt is carried into the estuary each year, where the muddy waters are stirred up by winds and the tides. Silt is Soil or rock derived Granular material of a Grain size between sand and clay Characteristics A tide is a repeated cycle of sea level changes in the following stages Over several hours the water rises or advances up a beach in the flood The shipping route from the Atlantic to Buenos Aires is kept open by constant dredging. Dredging is an Excavation activity or operation usually carried out at least partly underwater in shallow seas or Fresh water areas with the purpose of

History

Another satellite view of the estuary

The river's first sighting by a European was in 1516, when Spanish seaman Juan Díaz de Solís discovered it during his search for a passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Juan Díaz de Solís, (1470 – January 20 1516) was a Spanish Navigator and Explorer. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions He and a group of his men disembarked in what is today the Uruguayan Department of Colonia and were attacked by the natives (probably Guaraní although for a long time the fact was adjudicated to the Charrúas). Colonia del Sacramento (formerly the Portuguese Colônia do Sacramento) is a City in southwestern Uruguay, by the Río de la Plata, facing For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. Guaraní are a group of culturally related indigenous peoples of South America, distinguished from the related Tupi by their use of the Guaraní language The Charrúa were an indigenous people of southern South America in the area today known as Uruguay, northeastern Argentina and southern Only one of them survived, a 14-year-old cabin boy named Francisco del Puerto, allegedly because the natives' culture prevented them from killing elderly people, women and children. A Cabin boy or ship's boy is a Boy (in the sense of low-ranking male employee not always a minor who waits on the officers and passengers of a Ship, especially

Years later, from a ship commanded by Sebastián Caboto, "a huge native making signals and yelling from the coast" was seen; when some of the crew disembarked, they found Francisco del Puerto, brought up as a Charrúa warrior. Sebastian Cabot ( Italian: Sebastiano Caboto, Spanish: Sebastiano Gaboto; c He went back with the Spaniards and, after some time, returned to Uruguay, leaving no further trace of his whereabouts.

The area was visited by Francis Drake's fleet in early 1578, in the early stages of his circumnavigation. Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral, (c 1540 &ndash 27 January 1595 was an English Privateer, navigator, Slaver, and politician The first European colony was the city of Buenos Aires, founded by Pedro de Mendoza on 2 February 1536, abandoned and founded again by Juan de Garay on 11 June 1580. Buenos Aires is the Capital and largest city of Argentina. It is geographically located on the southern shore of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern Pedro de Mendoza y Luján (c 1487 &ndash June 23 1537) was a Spanish Conquistador, and the first Adelantado of the Events 962 - Translatio imperii: Pope John XII crowns Otto I Holy Roman Emperor, the first Holy Roman Emperor Juan de Garay (1528 &ndash 1583 was a Spanish Basque Conquistador. Events 1184 BC - Trojan War: Troy is sacked and burned according to the calculations of Eratosthenes.

An early World War II naval engagement between the German (heavy cruiser) Admiral Graf Spee and British ships, the Battle of the River Plate, started several miles off the coast of the estuary. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Description Admiral Graf Spee was a Deutschland class cruiser. The Battle of the River Plate ( December 13, 1939) was the first major naval battle in World War II. The German ship retired up the estuary and put into port. A few days later, rather than fight she was scuttled in the estuary.

Name

The English name "River Plate" is not, in fact, a mistranslation, as "plate" was used extensively as a noun for "silver" or "gold" from the 12th century onwards, especially in Early Modern English^[1] and the estuary has been known as the River Plate or Plate River in English since at least the time of Francis Drake^[2]. A modern translation of the Spanish Río de la Plata is "Silver River", referring not to colour but to the riches of the fabled Sierra de la Plata thought to lie upstream. Sierra de la Plata (a term in Spanish meaning "mountain range of silver" was a legendary treasury of Silver that was believed to be located in South

Fauna

The Río de la Plata is a habitat for the rare La Plata Dolphin, sea turtles (Caretta caretta, Chelonia mydas, and Dermochelys coriacea), and many species of fish. The La Plata Dolphin or Franciscana ( Pontoporia blainvillei) is found in coastal Atlantic waters of southeastern South America. The Loggerhead Sea Turtle ( Caretta caretta) is a Sea turtle and the only member of the genus Caretta. "Chelonia" redirects here It is also the name of the Superorder uniting turtles tortoises and terrapins ( Testudines) with the "proto-turtle" The leatherback turtle ( Dermochelys coriacea) is the largest of all living turtles

Footnotes

See also

• British invasions of the Río de la Plata
• Government of the Río de la Plata
• Rioplatense Spanish
• Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
• Rio de la Plata Earthquake 1888

References

• Rela, Walter. The British invasions of the Río de la Plata (Invasiones Inglesas del Río de la Plata were a series of unsuccessful British attempts to seize control of the Spanish Rioplatense Spanish ( Spanish: Español rioplatense, although locally known as castellano rioplatense The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata was the last and most shortlived Viceroyalty created by Spain in 1776 On June 5, 1888 an earthquake measuring 55 on the Richter scale, shook the upper Río de la Plata floor at 3 España en el Río de la Plata: Descubrimiento y Poblamientos (1516-1588). Montevideo: Club Español. 2001. ISBN 9974-39-317-5.

Primary sources, with commentary.

• Simionato, Claudia G. , Vera, Carolina S. , Siegismund, Frank (2005). "Surface Wind Variability on Seasonal and Interannual Scales Over Río de la Plata Area" Journal of Coastal Research. 21 (4): 770-783. Abstract online
• Piola, A. R. , R. P. Matano, E. D. Palma, and E. D. Campos (2005): "The influence of the Plata River discharge on the western South Atlantic shelf". Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 32, L01603, doi:10. 1029/2004GL021638.

External links

• Hydrological report published by the OAS
• Treaty between Uruguay and Argentina concerning the Rio de la Plata and the Corresponding Maritime Boundary (19 November 1973)
• Aquatic Habitat Modifications in La Plata River Basin, Patagonia and Associated Marine Areas
• Water and Land Management on the Uruguayan Coast of the Río de la Plata
• RioPla.com Río de la Plata on-line information (WAP, RSS and WWW): tides, weather, wind. The Organization of American States ( OAS, or as it is known in the three other official languages OEA) is an International organization, headquartered Charts for Garmin GPS.