Patagonia

Patagonia is a region in southern South America, shared by Argentina and Chile. It covers the southern part of the Andes, with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers in the west, and deserts, plateaus, and steppes in the east. Its boundaries are the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and waterways like the Strait of Magellan, the Beagle Channel, and the Drake Passage to the south.

The northern edge isn’t fixed. In Argentina, the Colorado and Barrancas rivers, flowing from the Andes to the Atlantic, are often taken as the limit, making Patagonia include the provinces of Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut, Santa Cruz, and the Patagones Partido in southern Buenos Aires Province. In Chile, most geographers and historians place the northern boundary at the Huincul Fault in the Araucanía Region, stretching through Los Lagos, Magallanes, and Aysén regions. The Tierra del Fuego archipelago is sometimes included.

When Spanish explorers arrived, various indigenous groups lived there. In a small part of northwestern Patagonia, some communities did limited farming; elsewhere, most people were hunter-gatherers—traveling on foot on the eastern plains and using dugout canoes and dalcas in the western fjords and channels. During colonial times, indigenous groups in northeastern Patagonia adopted a horseback-based nomadic lifestyle after horses were reintroduced.

Spanish explorers launched expeditions and set up settlements, while the Spanish Crown mainly aimed to keep rival European powers out for strategic reasons. After independence, Chile and Argentina both claimed the southern territories and began colonizing their Patagonian areas throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. This expansion severely reduced indigenous populations, as their societies were disrupted by settlers from Argentina, the Chiloé Archipelago, mainland Chile, and Europe. Indigenous resistance was ultimately crushed by military campaigns from both countries.

Today, Argentine Patagonia’s economy relies heavily on sheep farming and oil and gas extraction. Chilean Patagonia’s economy is dominated by fishing, salmon farming, and tourism.

The name Patagonia comes from the word *patagón*. Magellan used it in 1520 to describe native tribes his expedition thought were giants. These Patagons are now believed to have been the Tehuelche, who tended to be taller than Europeans of the time. Argentine researcher Miguel Doura suggested the name might derive from the ancient Greek region of Paphlagonia in modern Turkey, possibly the home of a character in the chivalric romance *Primaleon* printed in 1512, ten years before Magellan arrived. This idea was published in a 2011 report in the *New Review of Spanish Philology*.

In the Chiloé Archipelago, many place names have Chono origins, even though the main indigenous language when the Spanish arrived was Mapudungun. Chronicler José Pérez García theorized that the Cuncos (also called Veliches) settled on Chiloé Island in pre-Hispanic times, pushed by northern Huilliches who were themselves displaced by Mapuches. Though outside traditional Huilliche territory, the western Patagonian volcanoes Michimahuida, Hornopirén, and Chaitén have Huilliche names.

In Chubut Province, the modern name comes from the word *chupat*, from a transitional language between southern and northern Tehuelche groups called Tewsün or Teushen. It means “transparency,” linked to the clarity and purity of the river that runs through the province. It also relates to the Welsh pronunciation of *chupat*, which became “Chubut.” In Patagonian Welsh, it’s called “Camwy.” *Chupat*, *Chubut*, and *Camwy* all mean the same thing and refer to the river and province. Welsh settlers and place names are tied to one of Wales’ projects, Project Hiraeth.

Because of language, culture, and location, many Patagonians don’t consider themselves Latinos and proudly call themselves Patagonians. People from Y Wladfa, Laurie Island, the Atlantic Islands, Antarctica (including the Chilean town “The Stars Village” and the Argentine civilian settlement “Hope Base”), and other non-Latin-speaking areas use this term as a patriotic, inclusive demonym. A Patagonian is someone part of the region’s land, language, and culture—whether a citizen of Chilean or Argentine Patagonia, or from native communities that existed before the Boundary Treaty of 1881 divided the land.

Patagonia is split into Western Patagonia (Chile) and Eastern Patagonia (Argentina), with several territories still disputed and claiming rights. Mapuche people came from the Chilean Andes and voted to remain on different sides of Patagonia. Welsh settlers came from Wales and North America and voted to stay in Patagonia; when the treaty was signed, they voted for their culture and administration to be separate from the country, keeping their settlement, language, schools, traditions, regional dates, flag, anthems, and celebrations. Patagonians also live abroad in settlements.