Uruguay

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Oriental Republic of Uruguay
República Oriental del Uruguay
Motto: Libertad o muerte  (Spanish)
"Freedom or Death"
Anthem: National Anthem of Uruguay
"Himno Nacional de Uruguay"
Capital
(and largest city)
Montevideo
34°53′S 56°10′W / 34.883°S 56.167°W / -34.883; -56.167
Official language(s) Spanish
Ethnic groups  88% White
8% Mestizo
4% Black
<1% Amerindian[1]
Demonym Uruguayan
Government Unitary presidential constitutional republic
 -  President José Mujica
 -  Vice President Danilo Astori
Independence from Empire of Brazil 
 -  Declaration 25 August 1825 
 -  Recognition 28 August 1828 
 -  Constitution 18 July 1830 
Area
 -  Total 176,215 km2 (91st)
68,037 sq mi 
 -  Water (%) 1.5%
Population
 -  2009 estimate 3,308,535[1] (133rd)
 -  2011 census 3,251,526 
 -  Density 18.5/km2 (196th)
47.8/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2011 estimate
 -  Total $52.111 billion[2] (88th)
 -  Per capita $15,469[2] (61st)
GDP (nominal) 2011 estimate
 -  Total $49.423 billion[2] (79th)
 -  Per capita $14,671[2] (49th)
Gini (2010) 45.3[3] (medium
HDI (2011) Increase 0.783[4] (high) (48th)
Currency Uruguayan peso ($, UYU) (UYU)
Time zone UYT (UTC−3)
 -  Summer (DST) UYST (UTC−2)
Drives on the right
Internet TLD .uy
Calling code +598
Location of Uraguay

Uruguay is a country in South America. The language spoken there is Spanish. Its capital and largest city is Montevideo. Uruguay is bordered by two large neighbors, Brazil and Argentina. The only country in South America that is smaller than Uruguay is Suriname. The land there is mostly flat, and there are many farms in the countryside.

Contents

Departments [change]

Map of the departments of Uruguay

Uruguay is divided into 19 Departments.

Department Capital Area Population (2011 census)[5]
Artigas Artigas &1000000000001192800000011,928 km2 (4,605 sq mi) 73,162
Canelones Canelones &100000000000045360000004,536 km2 (1,751 sq mi) 518,154
Cerro Largo Melo &1000000000001364800000013,648 km2 (5,270 sq mi) 84,555
Colonia Colonia del Sacramento &100000000000061060000006,106 km2 (2,358 sq mi) 122,863
Durazno Durazno &1000000000001164300000011,643 km2 (4,495 sq mi) 57,082
Flores Trinidad &100000000000051440000005,144 km2 (1,986 sq mi) 25,033
Florida Florida &1000000000001041700000010,417 km2 (4,022 sq mi) 67,093
Lavalleja Minas &1000000000001001600000010,016 km2 (3,867 sq mi) 58,843
Maldonado Maldonado &100000000000047930000004,793 km2 (1,851 sq mi) 161,571
Montevideo Montevideo &10000000000000530000000530 km2 (200 sq mi) 1,292,347
Paysandú Paysandú &1000000000001392200000013,922 km2 (5,375 sq mi) 113,112
Río Negro Fray Bentos &100000000000092820000009,282 km2 (3,584 sq mi) 54,434
Rivera Rivera &100000000000093700000009,370 km2 (3,620 sq mi) 103,447
Rocha Rocha &1000000000001055100000010,551 km2 (4,074 sq mi) 66,955
Salto Salto &1000000000001416300000014,163 km2 (5,468 sq mi) 124,683
San José San José de Mayo &100000000000049920000004,992 km2 (1,927 sq mi) 108,025
Soriano Mercedes &100000000000090080000009,008 km2 (3,478 sq mi) 82,108
Tacuarembó Tacuarembó &1000000000001543800000015,438 km2 (5,961 sq mi) 89,993
Treinta y Tres Treinta y Tres &100000000000095290000009,529 km2 (3,679 sq mi) 48,066
Total¹ &10000000000175016000000175,016 km2 (67,574 sq mi) 3,251,526

Geography [change]

The highest point in the country is the Cerro Catedral whose peak reaches to 514 metres (1,686 ft).

Uruguay has 660 km of coastline.[1]

There are nine National Parks in Uruguay. Five in the wetland areas of the east, three in the central hill country and one in the west along the Rio Uruguay.

Economy [change]

Agriculture [change]

According to FAOSTAT, Uruguay is one of world's largest producers of: soybeans (9th); greasy wool (12th); horse meat (14th); beeswax (14th); quinces (17th); natural honey (19th); cattle meat (20th).[6]

Demographics [change]

Colour/Race (self-reported, 2008)[7]
White 95.4%
Black/African 3.4%
Indigenous 1.1%
Asian/Amarillo 0.1%

Uruguayans are mostly of European origin. 88%, or 88 of 100 people, are from European descent.[1]

Sports [change]

Centenario Stadium

Football is the most popular sport in Uruguay. The Uruguay national football team has won the FIFA World Cup on two occasions.

References [change]

  1. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named cia.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Uruguay". International Monetary Fund. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2011&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=298&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=56&pr.y=7. Retrieved 2011-10-02.
  3. "Gini Index". World Bank. http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI/countries/UY?display=graph. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  4. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named UNDP-HDR.
  5. "Censos 2011 - Instituto Nacional de Estadistica". Instituto Nacional de Estadística. http://www.ine.gub.uy/censos2011/index.html. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  6. "FAOSTAT 2008 by Production". faostat.fao.org. http://faostat.fao.org/site/339/default.aspx. Retrieved 2008-06-06.
  7. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named ine-anc.

Official Websites [change]