Nepedia
Back to Discover
Fluent Reader
🗺️

La Plata

geography Maturity 11-13 Next article →

La Plata is a large city in Argentina. It serves as the capital of the Buenos Aires province.

La Plata desde el aire
La Plata desde el aire

The city sits about 9 kilometers inland from the southern shore of a large estuary. It is surrounded by several other areas like Ensenada and Berisso.

Crop of ISS067-E-176677 La Plata, Argentina and vicinity
Crop of ISS067-E-176677 La Plata, Argentina and vicinity

The city covers a big area of 893 square kilometers. Many people live here in the metropolitan area. In 2022, the census counted 938,287 inhabitants in the Greater La Plata region.

Población Censos La Plata
Población Censos La Plata

The city has a very special layout. Governor Dardo Rocha wanted a new capital after 1880.

DardoRocha
DardoRocha

He hired an urban planner named Pedro Benoit to design it. Benoit used a rationalist plan for the city center. The city is shaped like a square with a central park. Two main diagonal avenues cross through the middle. One goes north to south, and the other goes east to west.

La Plata desde el aire
La Plata desde el aire

This unique design is why people call it the "city of diagonals." Most other streets follow a simple rectangular grid.

Nature is part of the city's famous look. Many streets and squares are lined with linden trees.

Jacaranda (1)
Jacaranda (1)

This is why people also call it the "city of linden trees." You can find other trees there too, like ash and plane trees. Some tropical trees like palms also grow in the area. The weather is humid and subtropical.

Clima La Plata (Argentina)
Clima La Plata (Argentina)

Summers are warm or hot, while winters can be quite cold. It is a very humid place because it is near the coast. Snow is very rare, with only five major events recorded.

La Plata has many important buildings and landmarks. The Cathedral of La Plata is the largest church in Argentina.

Buenos Aires - La Plata1
Buenos Aires - La Plata1

It sits in the center of Plaza Moreno. This cathedral is also the 58th tallest church in the entire world.

Municipalidad de La Plata y Plaza Moreno
Municipalidad de La Plata y Plaza Moreno

The city also has the Teatro Argentino, which is a very important opera house. The University of La Plata was started in 1897.

Unlp
Unlp

It is well known for its natural history museum and its observatory.

Museo de La Plata 2
Museo de La Plata 2

Sports and history bring the people of La Plata together. The city has two big football teams named Estudiantes and Gimnasia.

La Plata desde el aire
La Plata desde el aire

Estudiantes is a very successful club that has won many tournaments. They even won the Intercontinental Cup in 1968. The city also has a modern stadium called Estadio Ciudad de La Plata.

Autódromo Roberto José Mouras
Autódromo Roberto José Mouras

This large stadium was used during the 2011 Copa America. History has also changed the city's name before. Between 1952 and 1955, it was briefly called Ciudad Eva Perón. Now, it is back to its original name.

419 words

Where will your curiosity go next?

Keep exploring at your chosen reading level.

🖼️ Images & Media (24)
File:DardoRocha.jpg
DardoRocha.jpg
File:Crop of ISS067-E-176677 La Plata, Argentina and vicinity.jpg
Crop of ISS067-E-176677 La Plata,...
File:Buenos Aires - La Plata1.jpg
Buenos Aires - La Plata1.jpg
File:PA280461.JPG
PA280461.JPG
File:La Plata - Estación del Ferrocarril Roca.jpg
La Plata - Estación del Ferrocarril Roca.jpg
File:Clima La Plata (Argentina).PNG
Clima La Plata (Argentina).PNG
File:Casa de Gobierno de la Provincia de Buenos Aires-La Plata-1.jpg
Casa de Gobierno de la Provincia de...
File:Banco Provincia Casa Matriz-La Plata-1.jpg
Banco Provincia Casa Matriz-La Plata-1.jpg
File:Población Censos La Plata.JPG
Población Censos La Plata.JPG
File:Unlp.jpg
Unlp.jpg
File:EscuelaN19.JPG
EscuelaN19.JPG
File:La Plata desde el aire.JPG
La Plata desde el aire.JPG

+ 12 more

More to explore

🔬 Go deeper

More advanced topics to explore

🪜 Step back

Simpler topics to build understanding

What is Nepedia?

A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.