Resistencia, city in northern Argentina, capital of Chaco Province, on a tributary of the Paraná River. It is a commercial and transportation center for the sparsely inhabited frontier region to the northwest. Major manufactures include processed food, textiles, refined metal, and wood and leather products. The river port of Barranqueras is nearby. Originally called San Fernando del Río Negro, the site was settled in the 17th century as a Jesuit mission and then abandoned in the late 18th century. Following Argentina's war with Paraguay (1864-1870), the site was reestablished as an important military outpost. Its present name was adopted in 1876. Population (1991) 229,212.
