Neuquen is the capital city of the Argentine province of Neuquen, located in the east of the province, at the confluence of the Limay and Neuquen rivers. The city has a population of more than 265,000, making it the largest city in Patagonia.

Neuquen is both an important agricultural center, surrounded by fertile lands irrigated by the waters of the Limay and Neuquen rivers in the otherwise arid province, and a petrochemical industrial center that receives the oil extraction of different points of the province. It belongs economically and geographically to the Alto Valle region that produces apples, pears, and other fruits.

National Route 22 divides the city into two halves. The Presidente Peron Airport , at , is eight kilometers away from the city and serves regular flights to Buenos Aires, San Carlos de Bariloche, Comodoro Rivadavia, Rio Gallegos, Rio Grande, Ushuaia, and San Martin de los Andes.

History

In 1885, the lands of what was at that time called Confluencia (i.e., "confluence," referring to the two rivers) were auctioned to a few people. Shortly after the Conquest of the Desert campaign conducted by the military over Patagonia, the Mapuche and Tehuelche tribes that inhabited the province of Neuquen were either killed or pushed out of these lands.

But because there was no defined border with Chile, the Argentine government reached an agreement with the British company that was constructing the railway system to make an extension to the town in exchange for lands, in order to populate it. In 1899, the railroad reached Cipolletti in Rio Negro province, and three years later, after the construction of the bridge, arrived at Neuquen.

Neuquen was officially founded on September 12, 1904, and the capital of the territory was transferred from Chos Malal to the young town. The name "Neuquen" derives from the Mapudungun word nehuenken, meaning drafty, which the native people used in reference to this river.

By 1930, the town had only 5000 inhabitants. In the 1960s, it acquired a new importance when oil deposits were found in the province by the state company YPF. The 1970s and 1980s saw massive demographic growth, accompanied by improvements such as the creation of the Comahue National University in 1970.

Sister cities

Neuquen is sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI) with:

Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

External links

Municipality of Neuquen - Official website.
WelcomeArgentina. Information on the city
Biggest city in Patagonia
Argentor. Neuquen information
Capitals-of-Argentine-provinces

Other pages about Capitals of Argentine provinces

-Cordoba, Argentina -Corrientes -Formosa, Argentina -La Plata -La Rioja, Argentina -Mendoza, Argentina -Neuquen, Argentina -Parana, Entre Rios -Posadas, Misiones -Rawson, Chubut -Resistencia, Chaco -Rio Gallegos, Santa Cruz -Salta -San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca -San Juan, Argentina -San Luis, Argentina -San Salvador de Jujuy -Santa Fe, Argentina -Santa Rosa, La Pampa -Santiago del Estero -Tucuman -Ushuaia -Viedma, Rio Negro

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Neuquen,_Argentina