La Plata Montevideo Bay
Description:
Uruguayans themselves call La Plata not a bay, but a river. R o de la Plata literally translates as “Silver River”. In fact, it is an estuary (flooded estuary), formed at the confluence of the Uruguay and Paraná rivers.
The length of the estuary is 290 kilometers from the confluence of rivers to the Atlantic Ocean.
La Plata is the widest river in the world. At the confluence of Uruguay and Paraná, the width of La Plata is 48 kilometers, and the width at the confluence with the Atlantic Ocean is 220 kilometers.
Latin Americans believe that the name "Silver River" is associated with a period of gold rush, when silver was discovered in the riverbed. However, the historical version derives the name of the river from the English River Plate. So La Plata was named for a flat bottom with frequent shallows.