Corrientes

City, river port, and capital of Corrientes province, northeast Argentina, 1,025 km/640 mi northeast of Buenos Aires; situated on the Paraná River 40 km/25 mi below its confluence with the River Paraguay; population (1991) 267,700. It is in a stock-raising district, and serves as a distribution centre and export outlet for the region's agricultural produce. There are sawmills, and tanning and textile industries.

Corrientes was founded in 1588, making it one of Argentina's oldest cities. It has a cathedral, built in 1874, in front of which is a statue of the sergeant who saved the life of the national hero, San Martin, at the battle of San Lorenzo. The city is the setting for Graham Greene's novel The Honorary Consul. The city attracts many tourists for the annual ‘Carnaval Correntino’.