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There are about 10 million speakers of Portuguese in Portugual itself, and the large majority of speakers in Brazil (about 150 million), but where else in the world can one hear this wonderful language spoken?
The short answer: former Portuguese colonies. The Lusophonic (Portuguese-speaking) world, also known as the Lusosphere really wraps around the globe, with representative countries in Europe, South America, Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and a smattering of islands in the Atlantic.
Here’s a Big Map of the Lusophonic world.
Transparent Language’s own overview of the Portuguese language is very informative, and if you’ve ever been curious about the history of the language, you should check out that page.
More information…
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Here’s a neat colloquial ‘hack’ in Brazilian Portuguese. Instead of using ‘talvez’ to say ‘maybe,’ you can say ‘de repente.’ De repente usually mean ‘suddenly,’ but it is commonly used, at least in Rio, as ‘maybe.’
While ‘talvez’ requires the subjunctive e.g. ‘quem sabe, talvez seja melhor ficar aqui,’ you can use ‘de repente’ with any voice.
Here’s a pretty common situation you might hear ‘de repente’ in:
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With their decisive upset of Argentina on Monday July 16th, the Brazilian soccer team won the Copa America for the 8th time, defending the title.
Here’s an article in English and one in Português about the victory.
Many have noted the absence of several top Brazilian superstars, including Ronaldinho himself. Perhaps this lack of firepower contributed to Brazil’s loss to Mexico, a team that Argentina subsequently crushed, leaving fans concerned about Brazil’s chances in the final. The Brazilian team did not, however, share the opinion that they were outmatched, and won convincingly 3-0.
Is there a disconnect between what Brazilian soccer means to the fans and what it means to the Brazilian players themselves? Ever since Brazilian players began to be ‘exported’ to Europe and elsewhere for the regular season, the national team has been the last bastion of Brazilian soccer. What does it mean that some of the biggest stars ever to play the game now seem disinterested in representing their native country in international tournaments?
Videos after the jump…
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Following the disastrous plane crash in São Paulo Tuesday night, the Federação Internacional de Associações de Pilotos de Linhas Aéreas (Ifalpa in English) has asked for safety reform in Brazilian airports. (full article in Portuguese)
Though perhaps an oversimplification, it seems that the organization is primarily concerned with insufficient runway length and lack of standard measures that could help improve the safety of shorter runways.
Let’s hope that this incident is isolated, and that the long-standing problem of the short runway at Congonhas is solved immediately.
Our hearts and thoughts are with the families affected by this tragedy. Don’t let this incident deter you from travelling to Brazil…
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