Official name Oriental Republic of Uruguay, Span República Oriental del Uruguay
Local name Uruguay Timezone GMT -3 Area 176 215 km²/68 018 sq mi population total (2002e) 3 383 000 Status Republic Date of independence 1828 Capital Montevideo Language Spanish (official) Ethnic groups European (mainly Spanish, Italian) (90%), mestizo (8%) Religions Roman Catholic (60%), Protestant (2%), Jewish (2%), unaffiliated (30%) Physical features Located in E South America; grass covered plains (S) rise to a high, sandy plateau, traversed SE and NW by the Cuchilla Grande and Cuchilla de Haedo, rising to 501 m/1644 ft at Cerro Mirados; R Negro flows SW to meet the R Uruguay on the Argentine frontier. Climate Temperate, with warm summers, mild winters; average annual temperature 10°C (Jul), 22°C (Jan) in Montevideo; average annual rainfall 978 mm/38 in; rainy season (AprMay), occasional droughts. Currency 1 New Uruguayan Peso (UYU) = 100 centésimos Economy Traditionally based on livestock and agriculture; meat, wool, fish, wheat, barley, maize, rice; naturally-occurring minerals include granite and marble; hydroelectric power, food processing and packing, light engineering, cement, textiles, leather, steel. GDP (2002e) $26·82 bn, per capita $7900 Human Development Index (2002) 0·831 History Originally occupied by Charrúas Indians; visited by the Spanish, 1516; part of the Spanish Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata, 1726; province of Brazil, 181425; independence as the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, 1828; unrest caused by Tupamaro guerrillas in late 1960s and early 1970s; military rule until 1985; a President is advised by a Council of Ministers; bicameral legislature consists of a Senate and Chamber of Deputies. text-align:center;">| Flag | Coat of Arms |
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Motto: Libertad o Muerte (Spanish for "Liberty or Death") |
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| Anthem: Orientales, la Patria o la tumba | |
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Capital (largest city) |
Montevideo 34°53′S 56°10′W |
|---|---|
| Official language | Spanish |
| Government | Democratic Republic |
| - President | Tabaré Vázquez |
| Independence | from Brazil |
| - Water (%) | 1.5 |
| Population | |
| - 2005 estimate | 3,415,920 (128th) |
| - 2002 census | 3,399,237 |
| - Density |
19/km² (156th) 50/sq mi |
| GDP (PPP) | 2005 estimate |
| - Total | $32,885 million (90th) |
| - Per capita | $9,619 (67th) |
| HDI (2003) | 0.840 (high) (46th) |
| Currency | Uruguayan Peso (UYU) |
| Time zone | UST (UTC-3) |
| - Summer (DST) | UDST (UTC-2) |
| Internet TLD | .uy |
| Calling code | +598 |
Uruguay, officially the Eastern Republic of Uruguay or the Republic East of the Uruguay (River) (Spanish: República Oriental del Uruguay;
Administrative divisions
Uruguay consists of 19 departments (departamentos, singular - ''departamento):
| Department | Area (km²) 177 220 | Population (2004) | Capital |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artigas | 11,928 | 78,019 | Artigas |
| Canelones | 4,536 | 485,028 | Canelones |
| Cerro Largo | 13,648 | 86,564 | Melo |
| Colonia | 6,106 | 119,266 | Colonia del Sacramento |
| Durazno | 11,643 | 58,859 | Durazno |
| Flores | 5,144 | 25,104 | Trinidad |
| Florida | 10,417 | 68,181 | Florida |
| Lavalleja | 10,016 | 60,925 | Minas |
| Maldonado | 4,793 | 140,192 | Maldonado |
| Montevideo | 530 | 1,326,064 | Montevideo |
| Paysandú | 13,922 | 113,244 | Paysandú |
| Río Negro | 9,282 | 53,989 | Fray Bentos |
| Rivera | 9,370 | 104,921 | Rivera |
| Rocha | 10,551 | 69,937 | Rocha |
| Salto | 14,163 | 123,120 | Salto |
| San José | 4,992 | 103,104 | San José de Mayo |
| Soriano | 9,008 | 84,563 | Mercedes |
| Tacuarembó | 15,438 | 90,489 | Tacuarembó |
| Treinta y Tres | 9,676 | 49,318 | Treinta y Tres |
Geography
At 176.220 square kilometres, Uruguay is the second smallest sovereign nation in South America, after Suriname, and the third smallest political entity (French Guiana is the smallest).
Government resources
Find more information on Uruguay by searching Wikipedia's sister projects:
Dictionary definitions from Wiktionary
Textbooks from Wikibooks
Quotations from Wikiquote
Source texts from Wikisource
Images and media from Commons
News stories from Wikinews
General information
(Spanish) Uruguay Total - Uruguayan portal (Spanish) Portal Paysandu - Los inocentes de Siempre - Uruguayan portal (Spanish) Chihuahua Beach Nudist Beach in Maldonado Uruguay (Spanish)/(English) Uruguay.com - Uruguayan portal Open Directory Project - Uruguay directory category (multiple languages) (English) From Uruguay - Uruguayan blog (Spanish)/(German) Sociedad Alemana-Uruguaya - German Uruguayan society (Spanish)/(English)/(German) Wine Uruguay - Uruguayan Wine Guide (Spanish)/(English) Studio Stonek - Uruguayan photography studio and image bank Estancias - historic colonial architecture estates and cattle ranches in the Pampa (English) The Uruguay Page - a Uruguay metadirectory Uruguay cities satellite views Voter turnout, Gender quotas, Electoral system design and Political party financing in UruguayMedia
Brecha - Brecha Magazine El Espectador - Montevideo radio station El Observador - Montevideo daily newspaper El País - Montevideo daily newspaper Espectador - First radio station in Uruguay Infolatam - Information and news of Uruguay La Guía - La Guía, comerce and news of Las Piedras, Canelones, Uruguay La República - Montevideo daily newspaper Montevideo.com - Montevideo news web site Radio Oceano - Montevideo radio station Radio Sarandí - Montevideo radio stationTravel and commerce
Sites recommended
Casapueblo museumResources
(Spanish)/(English)/(Portuguese) Ministerio de Turismo del Uruguay - Government tourism information site Uruguay travel guide from Wikitravel (Spanish)/(English) Uruguay XXI - Investment and Export Promotion Traveltouruguay.com - Touristic information and promotion (Spanish)/(German) PuntaOnline.com Real Estate Portal for Punta del Este Farm land and historic Estancias for sale in UruguaySports
(Spanish) Asociación Uruguaya de Fútbol - Uruguayan Football Association (Spanish) Federación Uruguaya de Basketball - Uruguayan Basketball Federation (Spanish) Unión de Rugby del Uruguay - Uruguayan Rugby Union (Spanish) Asociación Uruguaya de Golf - Uruguayan Golf Association Club Nacional de Football Club Atlético Peñarol v • d • e South American Community of Nations (SACN) Argentina · Bolivia · Brazil · Chile · Colombia · Ecuador · Guyana · Paraguay · Peru · Suriname · Uruguay · Venezuelav • d • e Organization of American States (OAS) Antigua and Barbuda • Argentina • Bahamas • Barbados • Belize • Bolivia • Brazil • Canada • Chile • Colombia • Costa Rica • Cuba • Dominica • Dominican Republic • Ecuador • El Salvador • Grenada • Guatemala • Guyana • Haiti • Honduras • Jamaica • Mexico • Nicaragua • Panama • Paraguay • Peru • Saint Lucia • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines • Saint Kitts and Nevis • Suriname • Trinidad and Tobago • United States of America • Uruguay • Venezuela v • d • e Latin Union
Angola • Argentina • Bolivia • Brazil • Cape Verde • Chile • Colombia • Côte d'Ivoire • Costa Rica • Cuba • Dominican Republic • Ecuador • France • Guatemala • Guinea-Bissau • Haiti • Honduras • Italy • Mexico • Moldova • Monaco • Mozambique • Nicaragua • Panama • Paraguay • Peru • Philippines • Portugal • Romania • San Marino • São Tomé and Príncipe • Senegal • Spain • Timor Leste • Uruguay • Vatican City • Venezuela
v • d • e Countries and territories of South AmericaArgentina • Bolivia • Brazil • Chile • Colombia • Ecuador • Guyana • Panama • Uruguay • Venezuela
Dependencies: Aruba (Netherlands) • South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (UK)
* Territories also in or commonly reckoned elsewhere in the Americas, i.e.
v • d • e Mercosur/Mercosul (Southern Common Market)Members: Argentina • Brazil • Paraguay • Uruguay • Venezuela
Associate Members: Bolivia • Chile • Colombia • Ecuador • Peru
Observer: Mexico v • d • e Countries and territories on the South Atlantic OceanAfrica: Angola • Democratic Republic of the Congo • Republic of the Congo • Gabon • Namibia • South Africa
South America: Argentina • Brazil • Falkland Islands • Uruguay
On the between: Ascension Island • Saint Helena • Tristan da Cunha
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