Artigas is the capital of the Artigas Department of Uruguay. The name Artigas comes from that of the national hero, Jose Gervasio Artigas, who fought for the emancipation of the River Plate, and sought to create a federative nation from these colonies. It is located in the north of Uruguay, on the border with Brazil, separated only by a bridge from the town Quaraí of the state Rio Grande do Sul of Brazil. Artigas is the farthest city from Uruguay's capital Montevideo, being 600 kilometres (370 mi) away.

Artigas is renowned for its Amethyst mines. The city is served by Artigas International Airport.

It was founded on 12 September 1852 by Don Carlos Catalá. It was elevated to "City" category on 31 August 1915 by decree Ley No. 5.330

In 2004 Artigas had a population of 41,687.

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Uruguay

Artigas has a humid subtropical climate, described by the Köppen climate classification as Cfa. Summers are warm to hot and winters are cool, with the occurrence of frosts and fog. The precipitation is evenly distributed throughout the year, with an average of 1,293 mm (50.9 in), and the annual average temperature is around 19 °C (66 °F).

Uruguay ⁱ/ˈjʊərəɡwaɪ/, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; (Spanish: República Oriental del Uruguay pronounced: [re̞ˈpuβ̞lika o̞ɾje̞n̪ˈt̪al̪ d̪e̞l uɾuˈɰwai̯]) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to 3.3 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area. An estimated 88% of the population are of European ancestry.

Except for the recent union of Timoteo Domínguez Island and Argentina's Martín García Island, Uruguay's only land border is with Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, to the north. To the west lies the Uruguay River and the estuary of the Río de la Plata to the southwest. To the southeast lies the southern part of the Atlantic Ocean. With an area of approximately 176,000 square kilometres (68,000 sq mi), Uruguay is the second-smallest nation in South America by area, after Suriname.

Colonia del Sacramento, one of the oldest European settlements in the country, was founded by the Portuguese in 1680. Montevideo was founded by the Spanish in the early 18th century as a military stronghold. Uruguay won its independence in 1811–28 following a three-way struggle between the claims of Spain, Argentina and Brazil. It is a constitutional democracy, with a president who is both the head of state and the head of government.

José Gervasio Artigas (June 19, 1764 – September 23, 1850) is a national hero of Uruguay, sometimes called "the father of Uruguayan nationhood".

Artigas was born in Montevideo on June 19, 1764. His grandparents were from Zaragosa, Buenos Aires and Tenerife (Canary Islands), his grandparents fought in the War of the Spanish Succession and moved to the Americas to escape from poverty, settling in Buenos Aires in 1716. Artigas was the son of Martín José Artigas and Francisca Antonia Arnal, who came from a wealthy family. His parents enrolled him in the Colegio de San Bernardino, to pursue religious studies, but Artigas refused to submit to the school's strict discipline. Before he left the Colegio, he developed a strong friendship with Fernando Otorgues, who would work with him in later years. At the age of 12, he moved to the countryside and worked on his family's farms. His contact with the customs and perspectives of gauchos made a great impression on him. Once he had come of age, he distanced himself from his parents and became involved in cattle smuggling. This made him a wanted man among the owners of haciendas and with the government in Montevideo. A reward was put out for his death.