Immigration to Uruguay
[3] As a result, combined with generations of intermarriage, assimilation, and several waves of massive European immigration, the identity of Uruguay's indigenous peoples was largely erased.
Throughout the 19th century and the first half of the 20th, Uruguay boasted the highest proportion of immigrant population in South America, with a majority hailing from Southern Europe.
[8] In response, to secure Spanish control over the area, King Philip V of Spain approved the relocation of 25 families from the Canary Islands to the Banda Oriental.
The southwestern part of the country, particularly the Colonia Department, became a destination for a significant number of Central Europeans, attracted by its temperate climate, which resembled that of many of their regions of origin, as well as its fertile land suitable for agricultural and livestock practices.
[21] In 1858, Waldensians from Piedmont established Colonia Valdense,[22] and in 1862, a group composed primarily of Swiss, along with smaller numbers of Germans, Austrians, and French, founded Nueva Helvecia as an agricultural colony.
[25] In the second half of the 20th century, immigration increased significantly from several European countries, notably the United Kingdom, where individuals sought work in agriculture and industries controlled by English capital.
[29] From the final decades of the 19th century, facilitated by the Uruguayan government's open immigration policies, the influx of Spaniards—mainly Basques and Galicians—Italians, and French remained the most prominent.
[30] During the late 1880s, Jewish immigration to Uruguay also took root, initially with small groups of Sephardic Jews arriving from neighboring Brazil and Argentina.
Consequently, in 1906, a new law amended the previous regulation, specifying that the entry ban would not apply "to Syrians from the region of Lebanon," thereby increasing the migration of Lebanese Christians to Uruguay.
[36] According to estimates, between 1860 and 1920, over 600,000 European immigrants settled in Uruguay, predominantly Italians and Spaniards, leaving a lasting impact on the country’s culture and society, given their significant proportion relative to the national population.
[38] In the early years of the 20th century, driven by the reforms of the Batlle era—including labor and social rights, the separation of church and state, universal male suffrage, the passing of a divorce law, and the creation of a welfare state—Uruguay consolidated its position as a key destination for a significant influx of European immigrants.
[39][40] Among them were increasing numbers of nationals from Eastern European countries, such as Russians, Lithuanians, and Ukrainians, along with Greeks, and a larger influx of Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews fleeing pogroms, leading to the formation of a Jewish quarter in Montevideo.
After World War I, the arrival of Armenian survivors of the genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire began, and in the following years, the Armenian-Uruguayan community would grow to become one of the most significant in the diaspora.
[44] Between 1919 and 1932, approximately 100,000 European immigrants arrived in the country, driven primarily by the devastation of war, territorial reorganizations in Central Europe and the impact of ethnic persecution.
[47] Despite the strict immigration policies in Uruguay, the interwar period saw a new wave of migration, including Slovenes, Lithuanians, Croats, and a significant number of Ashkenazi Jews fleeing persecution.
[51] These refugees, mostly from Germany, Poland, Austria, and Hungary, sought refuge as a result of the rise of Nazism and the implementation of anti-Semitic policies by several European governments.
[56] Throughout the 1950s, German Mennonite immigrants from West Prussia established several agricultural settlements—El Ombú, Gartental, and Colonia Delta—where they preserved their customs and language, which were incorporated into the educational curriculum.
[59] In the 1960s, as Europe underwent reconstruction and significant improvements following World War II, the flow of European immigrants to Uruguay began to decline.
[61] Simultaneously, Uruguay entered a period of turmoil marked by economic crisis and social unrest, further intensified by the actions of the far-left urban guerrilla group, Tupamaros (MLN–T).
[72] The ease of document processing, facilitated by both nations' membership in the Southern Common Market, the shared language, and Uruguay's political and economic stability were among the key factors contributing to this migration.
[74] From 2020 onward, a new wave of immigration from neighboring Argentina emerged, primarily driven by the economic crisis the country had been enduring since 2018, which was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Minor immigrant groups that, although are small in number, still play an important role in Uruguayan society, include: There is a very recent inflow of Latin Americans: Peruvians, Bolivians, Paraguayans, Venezuelans.
[84] With the construction works of UPM pulp mills in Fray Bentos and later near Paso de los Toros, new small waves of immigrants have entered the country, in search of jobs.
