Argentine Jorge Bergoglio has been elected pope, the first ever from the Americas and the first from outside Europe in more than a millennium.

He chose the name Pope Francis.
   
After announcing ''Habemus Papum'' - ``We have a pope!'' - a cardinal standing on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica on Wednesday revealed the identity of the new pontiff, using his Latin name.

Bergoglio had reportedly finished second in the 2005 conclave that produced Benedict XVI who last month became the first pope to resign in 600 years.
   
Latin Americans are reacting with joy to news of the first pope from the hemisphere.

Near the cathedral in Argentina's capital, people burst into tears news cardinal Mario Bergoglio has been named pope.

At the St. Francis of Assisi church in the colonial Old San Juan district in Puerto Rico, church secretary Antonia Veloz exchanged
jubilant high-fives with the priest.

The 76-year-old reportedly got the second-most votes after Joseph Ratzinger in the 2005 papal election.

Bergoglio is credited for modernizing the Argentine church, known for being among the most conservative in Latin America. He is opposed to abortion and same sex marriage.