Santiago del Estero (Spanish pronunciation:[sanˈtjaɣoðelesˈteɾo], Spanish forSaint-James-Upon-The-Lagoon) is the capital ofSantiago del Estero Province in northernArgentina. It has a population of 252,192 inhabitants, (2010census[INDEC]) making it the twelfthlargest city in the country, with a surface area of 2,116 km2. It lies on theDulce River and onNational Route 9, at a distance of 1,042 km north-northwest fromBuenos Aires. Estimated to be 455 years old, Santiago del Estero was the first city founded by Spanish settlers in the territory that is now Argentina. As such, it is nicknamed "Madre de Ciudades" (Mother of Cities). Similarly, it has been officially declared the "mother of cities and cradle of folklore."[1]
The city houses theNational University of Santiago del Estero, founded in 1973, and theUniversidad Católica, founded in 1960. Other points of interest include the city'sCathedral, the Santo Domingo Convent, and the Provincial Archeology Museum.
The climate is subtropical with cool dry winters and wet humid summers. It receives an average annual precipitation of 600 mm, and the climate is warm.
Santiago del Estero and its surroundings are home to about 100,000 speakers ofthe local variety ofQuechua, making it the southernmost outpost of the language of theIncas. It is one of the few indigenous languages surviving in modern Argentina.
After a series of exploratory expeditions fromChile starting in 1543,Santiago del Estero del Nuevo Maestrazgo was founded on July 25, 1553, byFrancisco de Aguirre (although some historians consider its true foundation to be in 1550). Although it is the oldest city in Argentina, it preserves little of its formerSpanish colonial architecture, except for several churches.
In 1576, the governor of a province in northern Argentina commissioned the military to search for a huge mass of iron, which he had heard that Natives used for their weapons. They called the area "Heavenly Fields," translated into Spanish asCampo del Cielo. (This term now refers to a protected area situated on the boundary between the provinces ofChaco and Santiago del Estero, where a group ofiron meteorites were found, estimated as having fallen in aHoloceneimpact event some 4,000–5,000 years ago. In 2015, Police arrested four alleged smugglers trying to steal more than a ton of protected meteorites.[2])
The city was the capital of the Intendency of San Miguel de Tucumán during theViceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, and first seat of its bishop; those were later moved toSalta andCórdoba respectively.
Santiago del Estero stands in the middle of an extensive but largely semi-arid agricultural region. Originally adry forest area, the abundance ofquebracho attracted timber industries ofBritish capital during the 19th century, leading to extensive deforestation; the British-ownedCentral Argentine Railway reached the city in 1884.[3]
The province, in 1948, elected a youngPeronist activist,Carlos Arturo Juárez, as its Governor. Santiago del Estero's central political figure during the second half of the 20th century, he soon became indispensable to local politics (even out of power). A trueCaudillo (strongman), his amiable demeanor belied a record of ruthlessness towards opposition figures.[4]
The construction of the nearby Quiroga Dam (on theRío Dulce) in 1950, eased the city's chronic water shortage and spurred the growth of local agriculture, based oncotton andolives. The city's first school of higher education, theInstituto Superior del Profesorado (anormal school), was established in 1953. The city developed a sizable manufacturing sector based ontextile mills and otherlight industry from the 1950s on, though the public sector remained the largest employer. Santiago del Estero's population reached 100,000 in 1970.[3]
The province, however, remained one of the poorest in Argentina, falling further behind. In 1993, the city made international headlines when rioting erupted around the governor's mansion. What began as a protest by government workers who had not been paid in three months, soon grew to 4,000 demonstrators who burned cars, destroyed government buildings and even invaded the homes of prominent politicians.[5]
Juárez, by the 1990s, was readily ordering his opponents' deaths, notably that of former Governor César Iturre in 1996 and of Bishop Gerardo Sueldo in 1998. The 2002 deaths of two local women, however, were traced to Juárez's assassin, Antonio Musa Azar, and in an attempt to retain power, Juárez resigned (appointing his wife,Nina Juárez, governor).[4]
The bid failed, however, as PresidentNéstor Kirchner signed an executive order removing Mrs. Juárez from her post in March 2004. The Juárez couple, in their nineties, subsequently lived under house arrest in the city of Santiago del Estero; the former strongman died in 2010.
The city has historically been connected through theBelgrano andMitre railways. An elevated commuter rail line known asTren al Desarrollo is under construction in the city, connecting Santiago del Estero to the city ofLa Banda.[8]
Santiago del Estero lies in a transition zone between more temperate climates, typical of the Pampa, and the hotter climates of the Chaco region: while daytime highs are decidedly very hot, nights tend to cool down more than most locations in the Chaco. It has ahot semi-arid climate (BSh) bordering on ahumid subtropical climate (Cwa) under theKöppen climate classification.
The city is notorious for its very hot summer weather: the average high is 34 °C (93.2 °F) and 40 °C (104.0 °F) are attained on a regular basis; the highest temperature on record is 46.5 °C (115.7 °F) on November 1, 2009.[9] Nighttime temperatures are 20 °C (68.0 °F) in midsummer. There is a very short, humid season between December and February, with up to 140 millimetres (6 in) monthly; however, this rain falls during a handful of very strong thunderstorms, and so the amount that falls on a given year is extremely variable.
Fall is still warm, with average highs of 27 °C (80.6 °F) in April, and lows of 14 °C (57.2 °F). Temperatures can still soar to 40 °C (104.0 °F) in this season. Rainfall is scarce, and becomes practically 0 for 5 months: in July, only 3.7 millimetres (0 in) are expected. Winters bring very pleasant days (20 °C (68.0 °F)) with markedly colder nights (under 6 °C (42.8 °F)). Nonetheless, these averages are obtained through an alternance of heat waves and cold waves: short periods of 28 to 35 °C (82.4 to 95.0 °F) are followed by frosty days with highs around 12 °C (53.6 °F), and sometimes the thermometer fails to reach 8 °C (46.4 °F). The thermometer does descend below −5 °C (23.0 °F), and the record low is −9.0 °C (15.8 °F) on July 18, 1975.[9]
Late in the winter, heat waves become much more common, and in September, 40 °C (104.0 °F) are already possible. The pattern of intense heat waves followed by cool, windy weather is typical of spring, which is also very dry in Santiago. The high temperatures, extreme dryness and high winds create a very dusty environment. In October, the average high is already 31 °C (87.8 °F), and rainfall only arrives in late November. December is as hot as January, and the abundant rains make the landscape green for a few months.Total precipitation is low, 609 millimetres (24 in), and varies from one year to another.
The city is home to numerous important Argentine artists, such asRamon Gómez Cornet, Carlos Sánchez Gramajo, Alfredo Gogna, Ricardo and Rafael Touriño in visual arts, and Jorge Washington Ábalos, Bernardo Canal Feijóo, Clementina Rosa Quenel, Alberto Tasso, Carlos Virgilio Zurita andJulio Carreras (h) in literature.
Santiago's musical heritage is one of the most important cultural aspects of the city, with typical folklorechacarera andzamba. Some renowned artists and groups include the Manseros Santiagueños, the Ábalos Brothers (led by Adolfo and Alfredo Ábalos), Jacinto Piedra and Dúo Coplanacu.
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