Uruguay — books & literature

The story of Uruguay

Before European contact, the land that is now Uruguay was home to the Charrúa and other indigenous peoples, who lived across its grassy plains and river coasts. Spanish navigator Juan Díaz de Solís reached the Río de la Plata estuary in 1516, but Spain was slow to settle a territory with little precious metal. Portugal moved first, founding Colonia del Sacramento in 1680, prompting Spain to establish the fortified port of Montevideo in the 1720s to block Portuguese expansion. For a century the 'Banda Oriental' (Eastern Bank) was contested ground between Spanish and Portuguese, later Argentine and Brazilian, interests. National hero José Gervasio Artigas led the fight for regional autonomy from 1811, and after Brazilian annexation, the Thirty-Three Orientals declared independence in 1825; Britain brokered the 1828 Treaty of Montevideo creating Uruguay as a buffer state between Argentina and Brazil. The 20th century brought pioneering social reforms that earned Uruguay the nickname 'the Switzerland of South America', a brutal 1973-1985 civil-military dictatorship, and since then a return to one of Latin America's most stable, secular, and socially progressive democracies.

Timeline — key moments

1. 1516

   Juan Díaz de Solís becomes the first European to reach the Río de la Plata region.

2. 1680

   Portugal founds Colonia del Sacramento, opening a century of Spanish-Portuguese rivalry over the territory.

3. circa 1724-1730

   Spain establishes the fortified port of Montevideo to counter Portuguese expansion.

4. 1811-1820

   José Gervasio Artigas leads the independence and federalist movement of the Banda Oriental.

5. 1825

   The Thirty-Three Orientals declare independence from Brazil (25 August).

6. 1828

   Treaty of Montevideo, brokered by Britain, establishes Uruguay as an independent state.

7. 1830

   Uruguay's first constitution is adopted.

8. 1930

   Uruguay hosts and wins the first FIFA World Cup.

9. 1973-1985

   Civil-military dictatorship rules the country.

10. 2013

    Uruguay becomes the first country in the world to fully legalise the marijuana market nationwide.

Top 10 things to know about Uruguay

1. Montevideo is the capital and largest city, home to about half the national population.
2. Uruguay hosted and won the first-ever FIFA World Cup in 1930.
3. It was the first country in the world to fully legalise marijuana nationwide (2013).
4. Spanish is the official language, spoken in the Rioplatense dialect shared with Argentina.
5. Uruguay is one of the most secular states in Latin America, with an early separation of church and state.
6. The Uruguayan peso (UYU) is the national currency.
7. Mate, a shared herbal tea drunk from a gourd with a metal straw, is a daily social ritual.
8. Montevideo's Carnival is one of the longest annual carnival celebrations in the world.
9. José "Pepe" Mujica, president 2010-2015, became internationally known for donating most of his salary and living modestly.
10. Uruguay generates the large majority of its electricity from renewable sources, mainly wind and hydropower.

Famous people from Uruguay

Say it in Uruguay's language

Did you know?

• ★Uruguay hosted and won the very first FIFA World Cup in 1930, played in Montevideo.
• ★It was the first nation on Earth to create a fully legal, regulated marijuana market, in 2013.
• ★Montevideo's Carnival celebrations stretch on for around 40 days, among the longest in the world.

Uruguay culture

• Drinking mate from a shared gourd with a metal straw (bombilla) is a near-universal daily social custom.
• Asado (slow-grilled barbecue) is central to Uruguayan family and social life.
• Candombe, an Afro-Uruguayan drumming and dance tradition, is recognised by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage.
• Tango, though most associated with Buenos Aires, has deep roots in Montevideo too , the iconic tango "La Cumparsita" was written by a Uruguayan.

Why read Uruguay's books

From Eduardo Galeano's sweeping essays on Latin American history to Horacio Quiroga's dark, tightly-wound short stories and Mario Benedetti's poetry of everyday life, Uruguay's small population has produced an outsized literary voice worth exploring.