Brazil Uruguay River Uruguay Montevideo Río de la Plata Atlantic Ocean Argentina 4 W N S E Where Is Uruguay
Uruguay is a small country in South America Shaped like a teardrop it covers 68,037 square miles 176,215 square kilometers on the continent’s southeastern coast Uruguay’s northern and eastern borders touch Brazil The Uruguay River forms the country’s western border It separates Uruguay from Argentina The waters of the Atlantic Ocean wash onto Uruguay’s eastern shore To the south is the wide Río de la Plata Montevideo is Uruguay’s capital and largest city More than half of the country’s population lives there It stands where the Río de la Plata and the Atlantic Ocean meet 5
Pampas Rolling grassy plains called the Pampas stretch across much of Uruguay Small streams and rivers carve through them Large ranches called estancias cover vast areas of the Pampas Livestock graze on their land 6 The Land
Small regions of low hills rise in the north Farther south the Cuchilla Grande curves from Brazil toward the southern coast This string of highlands boasts Mount Catedral the country’s highest point Low fertile land follows Uruguay’s southern coast Farmers plant many crops in these rich soils Sand dunes beaches marshes and lagoons line the Atlantic Ocean The country sees mild moist weather year-round Atlantic coast 7
