Gaiman, Chubut

Gaiman
Town
250px
Gaiman Location of Gaiman in Argentina
Coordinates:
Country	Argentina
Province	Chubut
Department	Gaiman
Elevation	27 m (89 ft)
Population
• Total	5,753
Time zone	ART (UTC-3)
CPA base	U9105
Dialing code	+54 2965
Climate	BWk

Gaiman is a town in the Chubut Province of Patagonia in Argentina. It has a population of about 6,000 as per the 2001 census [INDEC]. It is located close to the River Chubut, about 15 km west of Trelew. Gaiman is a cultural and demographic centre of the main region of Welsh settlement in Argentina, known in Welsh as Y Wladfa. The town was founded in 1874 by settlers from Wales and the Central Chubut Railway arrived in 1908 connecting it to Trelew. Several hundred people in the region have conserved the use of the Welsh language alongside Spanish. The 'Eisteddfod de Chubut', a Welsh cultural festival, is held here every October, and Welsh teahouses (tai te; singular tŷ te) are numerous. The Museo Histórico Regional (Regional Historical Museum) commemorates local history and is bilingual in Spanish and Welsh. There are a number of Welsh Protestant chapels, of which the largest is Capel Bethel.

Just 10 km (6 mi) to the south of Gaiman is Bryn Gwyn, where a large number of fossils can be seen.

The town's name originates in an indigenous Tehuelche place-name meaning "rocky point."

Gallery

• G-A-I-M-A-N.JPG

  Gaiman entrance sign

• 

  Old Welsh school

• GaimanTunel.JPG

  Old train tunnel entrance

• GaimanRC.JPG

  Catholic church

• 

  Tŷ Nain Tea House and Museum

• 

  Capel Bethel Protestant chapel

External links

• Project-Hiraeth – Documents the stories of the Welsh colony in Patagonia, Argentina through film, text and illustration.