This neighbourhood bears the name of the independence hero Mariano Joaquín Boedo, a lawyer who was active in the events of July 9, 1816 and was one of the men who signed the declaration of independence from Spain. The main throughfare through the neighbourhood, Avenida Boedo, also bears his name.

The neighbourhood is mentioned in many tangos of the 1920s and 30s, described as an "arrabal" - the kind of working class suburb much romanticised in tango lyrics. The population of what was a semi-rural area with dairies, mills and kilns began to increase with the arrival of the tram network, and little by little Boedo was incorporated into the city conurbation, but the neighbourhood maintained its character and independent spirit, with its own political and literary groups. 

The Boedo group, an integral part of the neighbourhood's history

During the 1920s, a group of innovative highly politicised writers known as the Grupo Boedo would meet at Av Boedo 837/39. The group, whose members included the famous writer Roberto Arlt, aligned itself with the working class and leftwing ideas, in opposition to the more elitist Grupo Florida that met in the centre of the city. 

A neighbourhood of tango

The tango is another popular movement that had a strong presence in Boedo. Many musicians would meet in the neighbourhood's cafes, including what is now Esquina Homero Manzi at the corner of Avenida Boedo and San Juan, a junction that became famous because of the tango of the same name, written by Enrique Cadicamo.