Argentine Stereotypes - The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
I write too much, not often enough!
I have been posting infrequent, but very long posts so far in this blog. I am going instead to try and make a conscious effort to write shorter, snappier content, more often, so that I can cover more ground and avoid boring my readers to tears! Here is my first go at a slightly shorter post…
National Stereotypes
I was reading a Daily Telegraph (a UK newspaper) blog entry a while back about the rugby friendly tournament that included England, Ireland and Argentina. It caught my eye because I was born in England, from an Irish family, and now live in Argentina.
The blog was throwing a few national stereotypes about Argentines that got me thinking. Now I am not an overly politically correct person - I feel that on occasion stereotypes are important generalizations, and it is only by generalizing the specifics of the world that human beings can continue to have constructive conversations.
It’s not as if I think they are always true, sometimes quite the opposite, or helpful. But it is a fact that they are there. Sometimes they can even be funny, especially if accepted by the nation itself - for example, I accept that I can be a bit slow sometimes because of the Irish in me, and yes, my teeth are bad just like in The Simpson’s “Big Book of British Smiles”. 
So here is a top 10 of supposed Argentine Stereotypes, off the top of my head (more specifically regarding Buenos Aires, I guess):
The ‘Good’
- The excellent beef and malbec wine
- Everyone here loves Mate, and the whole ceremony around it
- The people are very warm and friendly
- The women are beautiful
- A cultured society - interested in theater, literature, art etc
The ‘Bad’
- Cheating at football (and then boasting about it!)
- Lazy - things taking a long time to get done
- Vain and a little arrogant
- Love a good disruptive protest
The ‘Ugly’
- Mullets and 1980s music / fashion
Your Suggestions for Argentine Stereotypes?
I am not saying that I think any of the above are right or wrong etc, or anything like that. Just that they are widely circulated stereotypes. What are your views on these Argentine stereotypes? Please let me know by commenting below.
Can you think of any more common stereotypes about Argentina or Buenos Aires, good or bad? Again, please leave your suggestions as comments….
December 1st, 2006 at 7:14 pm
Well, maybe that was not such a short post after all! I will keep trying to cut my rambling down….
December 1st, 2006 at 9:18 pm
* Somos 30 millones de Directores Tecnicos (Futbol)
* Estamos todos psicoanalizados
Saludos!
December 2nd, 2006 at 1:19 pm
Gracias Alejandro!
I should have remembered your second suggestion - my fiance lives in the part of Palermo sometimes called ´Villa Freud´, where all the psychoanalysts are
Que mas?
December 2nd, 2006 at 5:49 pm
See, I think the mullets and the ’80s fashion actually put this city at the top of the game - I could take a picture here and tell a New Yorker it’s Williamsburg and they’d totally believe me. But all these pretty ladies would probably look good even if gunny sacks were the new skinny jeans.
December 2nd, 2006 at 6:34 pm
Hi Emily, thanks for making your way over and adding a comment
Just to let everyone know, I actually have a mullet myself, and it´s quite far advanced too!
December 3rd, 2006 at 2:02 am
Are we talking fashion mullet, or hair-cape? I think we live near your fiance, we should all go get a drink one of these days. Hair-capes invited.
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:27 am
yes, the stereotyping is spot on, agreed
December 4th, 2006 at 1:12 pm
Hi Emily,
I think it is somewhere between the two right now. To be honest, it is just a mess. I need a haircut….after which it will almost certainly become a fashion mullet because they also do that at the hairdressers, even if not asked for.
We should get a drink one of these days, indeed. Maybe sometime in January…I leave for the UK tomorrow for the rest of December.
Well, I have a plane to catch….and then everyone should expect a faster rate of blog posting from me when in the UK, because I will have more time to catch up on the many things I want to write about
December 24th, 2006 at 9:00 pm
Lets get this straight…they do wear mullets but they’re stylish at least compared to the american mullet. And..they dress 80s for fun, theyr not behind the times…actually you can go to the independent clothing designers fair every weekend…anything from cheap to expensive and inbetween..casual and formal, shoes, shirts etc.., i personally beleive they dress much better then the english. I lived there this summer and am going back to study for a year because i love the scene there so much…reggae, rock en espaniol, graffitti, art, film…bsas is one rockin funky city!
December 27th, 2006 at 2:28 pm
Hi Nathan,
I agree with you entirely. The
next to the part about mullets and 80s fashion in the post shows I am only joking…and the fact that I have an Argentine-type mullet myself!
My Argentine fiancee agrees with you that Argentines dress much better than the English. But then she has only met me, so she has a bad example to base her opinion on!
I of course wholeheartedly agree that BA is a ‘rockin funky city’
February 8th, 2007 at 1:08 pm
Hi there!
A workmate told me all the Argentinians wear mullets… he was (almost) right. Personnally, I dislike the style, but that’s just a point of view.
A VERY GOOD thing about the Argies is that they are really friendly and (almost) always ready to give you a hand and treat you like one of the family.
[I also liked the "fileteado porteño"]
A (very) bad thing is the lack of attention to detail when it comes to manufacturing things,or doing some kind of service… I think they often fall short of doing the right thing, because they’re so anxious to have the thing finished. It prevented me from buying some very good looking stuff but which would wear off very quickly in time.
Let me jsut add that I have just returned from a 2 weeks-trip to my native Buenos Aires… I was only 6 when my parents had to leave the country and I was never able to come back for a visit… I had been waiting for 30 years to fulfill this dream, and I am so happy it finally came true!
February 9th, 2007 at 8:24 pm
Machismo-ness and catcalling really REALLY get to me. They dont pick up their dog poo either! Other than that, love the city.
November 21st, 2007 at 12:18 am
My wife and I noticed (in Bs As 11-07)that all the women were very close in size. Coming from the USA where we have very large (read: Fat) and regular size, it was refreshing not to see the very large. The reputation; however, of the Argentine being wonderfully dressed with a touch of glamor is simply not true. They look nice, but far from well dressed and glamorous.
Bert
December 11th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
I agree with Bert, that women look very nice, bet defenitly are far from well dressed and glamorouse. Except if you go to a high class party, but the averedge women are bad dressed. I am form Buenos Aires and I say this having the contrast to compare, i have been very lucky and travelled to 20 countries. here in bs as, we are starting, just in the past 5 years, to dress more funny, but before that we were all the same.
January 26th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
oh my god, i´ve been reading the stuff you published in this site for like…3 days and let me tell you i´m having so much fun with all those translations and your opinions.
I´m Argentinian by the way and i definitely have to say there´s not much “stylish” people here, it´s weird and maybe a bit hard to explain.
Anyways, thanks for saying that “the women are beautiful”.
You´ve got my e-mail so you could contact me if you want or need or whatever.
Bye.
March 17th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
Hi, everyone!
I think that’s all I have to say 
KISSES, CAMI.
It’s funny, I found this article by making some research. I have to make a schoolwork about this stereotype thing and I have to say, I agree with you. I’m an argentinian and I think most of the things you wrote are true. I mean, who doesn’t love our beef ?? it’s imposible not to love it! and about the lazyness.. definitely true! But let me say about the well dressed and glamorous women, that there are so many diferent styles.. I couldn’t decide whether women are well or bad dressed, I can only say that they beeing beautifull is definitely true !
http://www.fotolog.com/wasted_memories
May 3rd, 2008 at 11:49 pm
I agree with everything you’ve said . My family is from BA and lives there and it’s all very true. Especially the mullet part…haha! Thank God I wasn’t the only person who noticed that!
September 2nd, 2008 at 11:30 pm
in was writing about stereotypes, and i found your blog. its quite fun. and i must say im agree with all you say. mm, nop, almost all. if you want to see beautiful women in arg, go some kms north, to Rosario. only in Riga, Latvia, i ve seen more beautiful women together. good luck!
October 28th, 2008 at 12:07 am
Having had such a turbulent political history, Argentineans are quite politically aware and they “all” have a professional opinion about how to resolve any political/economical problem, be it domestic or in some far far away country.
Argentinean cab drivers are the epitome of the above stereotype.
November 27th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I came across your site while researching Bs. As. Bars and pubs. I have fond memories of them as having ’soul’ (as many things in Bs As).And have been toying with the idea of opening a Buenos Aires style bar-cafe in Toronto. Anyway, I digress…
I couldn’t help but have my eyes swell up with tears as reading all your comments (good and bad). An overwhelming nostalgia overcame me.
I was born in Buenos Aires, and came to toronto when I was two. Where I lived for 5 years. Went back to Argentina when I was about 7. Lived there until I was 18, and then back to Toronto (in 1989) I’ve been living here (toronto) since.
I’ve lived most of my life in Canada (I am now nearly 38) and haven’t been to Bs As in over 10 years. Because of my work, it is nearly impossible to take any more than one week off, but those years living in Bs As were by far the best time of my life, and couldn’t let go of the memories and fondness if I tried
Even with all it’s ‘chaos’it definitely has “un no se que” that no other city I’ve visited has. Romantic and soulful as no other place.
I miss it. To all of you who live there….. Lucky you
December 29th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
I spent three months in Argentina earlier this year so I’d like to add to this list.
Firstly the mullet thing. I did see my fair share of Spanish mullets, as they are sometimes called here (I’m Canadian). Porteños generally are more concerned with style. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are more stylish or well dressed - though many of them are. Image and appearance are just more important there I think.
Which leads me to the next thing, the women. The women in Buenos Aires are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. But again, a bit of that goes back to the appearance thing. Also, the fact that a good percentage of Porteños are of Italian or Spanish decent doesn’t hurt in the beauty department.
Obesity is rare or not seen nearly as often as it is in North America.
Their government really doesn’t work and the people aren’t afraid to admit it. And they don’t trust their banks - can you blame them? They live in a resource rich country but often seem unable to make the most of their riches, for whatever reason.
Some Argentines think they are a special bunch when comparing themselves to other South Americans. Sure, they are unique in that their country, or at least Buenos Aires, Córdoba and other large cities, are made up of recent European immigrants. That doesn’t make them better though - just different.
Overall, the Porteños, and Argentines in general, are great people. Kind, interested, cultured and curious about visitors to their country.
February 12th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
You hit the nail on the head! The comments are also great. I especially agree with “somos todos DTs” - we are all soccer coaches. The Argentine National Team coaches are either geniuses or bums that should be thrown out on the street. There’s no middle ground. It’s much the same in politics. We argue and behave as if we know all the facts and are subject matter experts. Also, we are very aggresive drivers.
On the “good” column, it is such a beautiful country. Every visitor I know comments on the natural beauty and breathtaking landscapes.