Chubut is a province in southern Argentina. Along with the province of Río Negro (to the north), Chubut was incorporated into Argentina in 1884 following a brutal military campaign (the Conquest of the Desert) against the area's indigenous inhabitants, the Tehuelche. The name Chubut comes from the Tehuelche word chupat, meaning “transparent” — the Tehuelche's description of the province's namesake river.
Population
~510,000
Capital
Rawson
Area
~225,000 km²
Tehuelche People
The Tehuelche (also known as The Aónikenk) are the indigenous inhabitants of mainland Argentine Patagonia. They were originally nomadic hunter-gatherers and physically possessed very little in order to cover vast distances as they followed game. Their main prey consisted of guanacos, rheas, fish and shellfish. Relatively, the Tehuelche were larger in size than Europeans; Spanish explorers described them as giants; thus, sparking the legend of the patagones. Today, it is estimated that the surviving descendants of these indigenous people number less than 30,000.
The Conquest of the Desert
The Conquest of the Desert (La Conquista del Desierto, 1870s–1884) was a military campaign aimed at incorporating the large territories of present day Patagonia into the Republic of Argentina. During the conquest, thousands of indigenous people were killed. The Tehuelche, led by chieftain Inacayal, were one of the last indigenous groups to surrender. The campaign stemmed Chilean expansion in Patagonia (east of the Andes). While some describe the conquest as "bringing civilization," most describe it as genocide of indigenous people.
Río Chubut
Río Chubut is a river that flows eastward across South America beginning in the Andes and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. The river mouth is located ~65 kilometers south of Puerto Madryn, a small city in the Golfo Nuevo. The name of the river comes from the Tehuelche word chupat, meaning “transparent." In the late 19th century, Welsh settlers colonized the banks of the river and established Argentina's first irrigation system by digging ditches to irrigate the plains alongside the river.
Peninsula Valdés
Peninsula Valdés is a protected nature reserve and UNESCO World Heritage Site (1999). Located on the Atlantic coast, it's home to the San José de la Candelaria Fort, the most prominent Spanish mission in Patagonia. Many species such as Magellanic penguins, Pichi (dwarf armadillo), maras, guanacos, and grey foxes can be spotted in the protected lands. The coastline surrounding Península Valdés is inhabited by sea lions, elephant seals, fur seals, and southern right whales (who visit the adjacent gulf's warm and calm waters between May and December to mate and give birth).
Y Wladfa
In 1865, a ship containing 153 Welsh settlers (primarily from the South Wales Coalfield region) sailed across the Atlantic Ocean and landed on Chubut's coast near modern-day Puerto Madryn. The Argentine government had promised the settlers land titles upon the colonization of this remote area and the settlers had been told that the area was of similar climate to lowland Wales. They soon discovered that they had arrived in a semi-arid desert where there was little drinking water. Seeking more hospitable terrain (and with only a single wheelbarrow to carry their belongings), they marched 65 km south, to the mouth of Río Chubut and began building their first settlement at the present-day town—and Chubut capital—Rawson. By the 1880s, most of the promising agricultural land along the Chubut river valley had been privatized. Welsh settlers headed west, exploring, then settling in a fertile area in the foothills of the Andes (near present-day Trevelin and Esquel) which they named Cwm Hyfryd (meaning "beautiful valley").
