“It Must Have Been Really Hard”: History of Afrikaners in Argentina Has Mzansi Fascinated

• A Cape Town content creator shared the story of Afrikaners who emigrated to Argentina after the Second Anglo-Boer War
• The post explained that between 1902 and 1908, around 650 Boer settlers left South Africa for Patagonia in Argentina
• South Africans were amazed by the story, with some sharing that they had visited the descendants of these settlers

After the Second Anglo-Boer War, a small group of Afrikaner families packed up and moved all the way to Argentina. A Cape Town content creator shared this fascinating piece of history, complete with old photos of the settlers on 2 November 2025. The post showed pictures of Afrikaners tending sheep on farms, relocating with their families and building new lives in a land far from home.

The story starts with the aftermath of the war, which left many Afrikaners facing economic hardship and political uncertainty under British rule. General Ben Viljoen, a Boer commander, believed that the open grasslands of South America could offer opportunities very similar to those in the Transvaal.

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Back then, the Argentine government was encouraging European immigration to populate its southern regions. They even offered land, transport assistance and even settlement incentives to attract farmers, which was part of Argentina's strategy to increase agricultural output.

According to Wikipedia, between 1902 and 1908, about 600 to 650 Boer settlers came to Argentina. Life in the country was tough. The climate was cold and windy, and the land was less fertile than what they had known in South Africa. They also lived far from other Afrikaner communities and had no South African support networks nearby. Despite the difficulties, they built small farming settlements, established Dutch Reformed churches, and taught their children Afrikaans alongside Spanish.

Mzansi reacts to Afrikaner history

South Africans were fascinated by the story and shared their thoughts in the comments:

@david_ralph wrote:

"I visited Comodoro Rivadavia several years ago on a business trip. I was told about the area's Afrikaner heritage, but was blown away when I was met at the airport by the town's mayor, who was a descendant of the Afrikaner settlers..."

@david_fairweather said:

"Well done indeed to those ex South African Afrikaner farmers and their families who had the courage to emigrate to Argentina and start their new lives after the Boer/England War in SA."

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@matt_matthews shared:

"There are a few documentaries made of our farming communities that are now established in Argentina, who were not happy about being British subjects."

@zee_van_der_forte wondered:

"I wonder if that's how the ostriches got there? I read somewhere that Argentina has now surpassed SA as the No. 1 industry for Ostrich(?)"

@tamarin_van_wyk added:

"How very interesting. There's so much history and many stories to learn."

What happened to the settlers

Over time, many of these families integrated into Argentine society. By the mid-20th century, most of their descendants had adopted Spanish as their primary language, and intermarriage with local families became common. However, according to Wikipedia, around 300 people still speak Afrikaans today, keeping the language alive in small pockets of the community.

Facebook page @origins22, run by a Cape Town content creator who shares historical facts and stories, posted this fascinating piece of history. Today, descendants of the original settlers can still be found in certain Argentinian areas.

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View the Facebook post below:

More Afrikaners living abroad

• Briefly News recently reported on an Afrikaans man living in America who showed how online shopping affected malls in Florida.
• An alleged Afrikaner refugee spoke about her life in the US after moving from South Africa through the refugee programme.
• DIRCO responded to the USA's refugee policy prioritising Afrikaners, expressing concern over claims of white genocide in South Africa.

Source: Briefly News