1880–1930
The age of mass immigration
From Europe, across the sea. The Argentina of today was shaped by this great migration.
Seven million arrivals
From 1880 to 1930, Argentina became one of the world's great destinations for immigrants. Some seven million people arrived between 1870 and 1930, around 80% of them Italians and Spaniards. The country needed vast land and labor, and actively encouraged immigration.
Buenos Aires' population exploded into a metropolis of mingled languages and cultures. Many newcomers crowded into the tenement houses (conventillos) near the port.
A culture born from the melting pot
The longing of those who left home, the encounters, the mingling — it was from this port-city melting pot, in exactly this era, that tango was born. Its lyrics carry lunfardo, the slang of the immigrants.
Argentina's self-image as a “melting pot of races” (crisol de razas) was shaped by this migration. Today some also note that this story could obscure the presence of indigenous and Afro-Argentine peoples.
Key terms
- Mass immigration (1880–1930)
- ~7 million arrived; about 80% Italian and Spanish.
- Crisol de razas
- The “melting pot of races”; Argentina's multi-ethnic self-image.
- Lunfardo
- Slang born in the immigrant port; preserved in tango lyrics.
About 100 years ago, many people came by ship from Europe.
People from Italy and Spain came to live together in Buenos Aires. Many cultures mixed, and from that mixing the music called tango was born.
Key terms
- Immigrants
- People who move from another country to live.
- Melting pot
- A place where many things mix together.