Uruguay travel guide — Uruguay tourism and travel information

Uruguay

The Eastern Republic of Uruguay (translated from the Spanish República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in southern South America, bordered by Brazil to the north, the Uruguay River to the west, the estuary of the Rio de la Plata (River Plate) to the southwest, with Argentina on the other bank of both, and finally the South Atlantic Ocean to the southeast.

The name "Uruguay" comes from the language of the Guarani of Paraguay, "Uru" meaning "other side" and "guay" meaning "river."

Uruguay geography

Uruguay is the second-smallest country in South America and the landscape features mostly rolling plains and low hills (cuchilla) with a fertile coastal lowland; most of it grassland, ideal for cattle and sheep raising. The highest point in the country is the Cerro Catedral at 514 m. To the southwest is the Rio de la Plata (Silver River), the estuary of the Uruguay River that forms the western border, and the Parana River, that does not run through Uruguay itself. The only other major river is the Rio Negro and several lagunes are found along the Atlantic coast.

The climate in Uruguay is temperate, but fairly warm as freezing temperatures are almost unknown. The predominantly flat landscape is also somewhat vulnerable to rapid changes from weather fronts, as well as to the pampero, a chilly and occasionally violent wind blowing north from the pampas plains in Argentina.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Uruguay".