Vital Points Concerning Learning Portuguese

Before learning any language, it is a good idea to get the facts. At the very least you should know what countries officially speak your language of choice. If you have decided to learn portuguese language, you should know that there are many countries other than Portugal who have Portuguese as their official language. First of all, learning Portuguese is a great idea because it is the 5th most spoken language in the world. Chances are, knowing how to speak Portuguese will come in handy.

Many people think that everyone in South America speaks Spanish. However, Portugal colonized Brazil, making Portuguese the official language of the country. Brazil is a huge country that makes up about half of the population of South America. That means that half of South America is made up of Portuguese speakers.

One important thing to know about Portuguese is that there are two different standards of Portuguese. The Portuguese spoken in Portugal and the Portuguese spoken in Brazil are drastically different. Not only do the two standards sound different in terms of pronunciation, their grammatical structure and vocabulary differ greatly as well.

Because of the African slaves that were brought over when slavery was rampant in Brazil, the Portuguese spoken there today has African elements. In addition to the African language’s influence, the languages of various native Indian tribes living in Brazil at the time of colonization have had a strong influence on the language as well. It is because of these specific influences that Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese differ so drastically.

Portuguese is not just the official language of Brazil and Portugal but 9 other countries as well. Portuguese is spoken in several areas of Africa such as Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde. In addition, it is one of the official languages of East Timor and Macau, in Asia. That means that Portuguese is spoken in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. Not to mention the expansive immigrant populations in the United States.

Traveling to a country without being able to speak their native language is a risky idea. Usually, residents will appreciate if you attempt to at least learn basic phrases in their language. Instead of assuming that everyone speaks English, enroll in a language course so you can be better prepared for travel.

Since Portuguese is a major language spoken all over the world, it should not be hard finding a course in your home town. If you can find a native speaker to do one-on-one conversation courses with you, it will be beneficial. Make sure the language course you take actually teaches the dialect of Portuguese you need to know. Although learning European Portuguese to travel to Brazil is better than nothing, you should continue searching for a different class.

Do not assume that just because you speak Spanish, you will have an easier time when you start to try to learn Portuguese. Although the two languages are both Latin based and have similar vowels, they differ in many ways. The most notable way the two languages differ is in their pronunciation. Portuguese sounds almost nothing like Spanish and to someone who has never heard is spoken before, it has been described as sounding like a mix between French, Arabic and Swedish. Research language lessons to find the right learning program for you.