PORTUGUESE PEOPLE & LANGUAGE

People build a country, but a country also shapes people. What Portuguese people are depends to a great extent on what Portugal is, as a country, and on how external circumstances influence the internal political and social reality over time. Portugal has always been a small country with few resources, and the Portuguese people have always had to fight to escape poverty and overcome the scarcity of resources. It was this struggle that was at the origin of the great Portuguese discoveries in the 15th and 16th centuries and was the cause of successive waves of emigration.

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PORTUGUESE PEOPLE

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Despite the variety of landscapes, Portugal has a small and cohesive territory and this is reflected in the cultural homogeneity of Portuguese people. When you travel to Portugal, meeting people and learning some Portuguese will surely be highlights of your trip.

Portuguese society

Historically, Portuguese people were characterized by low schooling and concentrated in sectors of activity such as agriculture, textiles, clothing or footwear, and remained so until the establishment of a democratic regime (1974) and entry into the European Community (1986). Since then, investment in health and education has increased, and the standard of living of the Portuguese people has started to approach the European average. The average level of education of the Portuguese people has increased and science and technology has developed, with Portugal exporting qualified workers, and Portuguese scientists working in the best companies and universities in the world.

The economy has modernized, through mechanization and digitalization, but it is still fragile and very dependent on foreign investments. The Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have been blows to the economy, with huge impacts on the tourism industry and the prices of goods. In the near future, Portugal still has to fight the age old battle against two enemies: increasing inequality and persistent poverty of a significant part of the population (latest numbers are around 17%).

Differences and unity

It is true that there are many cultural differences between portuguese living in cities, predominantly on the coast, and in rural areas, or between the north and the south of the country, but these are not profound differences, and there are no fracturing political or social issues in Portuguese people and society.

Portuguese people on the mainland are not exactly the same as on the islands, nor are Portuguese people in Lisbon the same as in Porto, but there is a very strong group feeling, and a common identity, which is not unrelated to the fact that Portugal has the oldest borders in Europe, with language and religion being strong factors for national cohesion.

Emmigration

There is a big slice of Portuguese people living outside Portugal, the emigrants. With peaks of emigration in the 20s and 60s of the 20th century, as well as in the first decade of the 21st century, many were the Portuguese who left in search of a better life, with main destinations Brazil, France, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, United Kingdom and USA. Even far away, Portuguese people remain united in communities and with a strong connection to the country they left behind, temporarily returning for vacations and definitely at the time of retirement.

Politics

Politically, Portuguese people do not like extremes and vote mostly in center-right (PSD; Social-Democrat Party) or center-left (PS; Socialist Party) parties and, despite the conservative influence of the Catholic Church, most Portuguese people are liberal in customs. Economically, most Portuguese people have low salaries, with the average gross monthly salary being around € 1300.

You can check out here all the statistics about Portugal and Portuguese people.

Ten stereotypes about portuguese people

A stereotype is a stereotype because it is an idea so repeated that it has become common knowledge to be true. But do they correspond to reality? If it is true that generalizations should not be made, stereotypes always have a basis of truth. Here are 10 stereotypes about the Portuguese people, some that are close to reality, and others that are not.

1. Portuguese people are hospitable

True! Portuguese people discovered half of the world for the european countries, and often emigrated to the other half, so they know well the importance of being welcomed. In general, Portuguese people are good hosts, friendly and helpful, trying to help where they can.

2. Portuguese love football

True! Football is a national passion. Few Portuguese people do not like football and do not allow themselves to be led by heated discussions with supporters of other clubs. The National Football Team, European champion in 2016, gathers the support of all fans. However, problems of corruption and some violence have led some Portuguese people to get away from football.

3. Portuguese are proficient in several languages

Not quite! Portuguese people are, in general, resourceful, that is, they try to overcome a difficult situation in several ways, even if they don’t know exactly how. And that includes giving guidance to a lost tourist even if they don’t speak the language! Even in younger generations, the proficiency in English is something very hard to find.

4. Portuguese are good talkers

True! Despite the problem with foreign languages, like the Spanish, Italians and Greeks, Portuguese are, in general, people who talk easily with strangers and like to talk about everything from politics to football, including gossip.

5. Portuguese people are not punctual

Sometimes! In a social context, it is normal for Portuguese people to arrive 10-15 minutes late for an appointment or meeting, but on a professional level, punctuality is increasingly respected.

6. Portuguese always take a coffee break

True! The story goes that 5 o’clock tea in England came about thanks to the Portuguese monarch Dona Catarina de Bragança, but today expresso coffee is the favorite among the Portuguese. Coffee moments are inevitable in the middle of the morning or afternoon, as well as at the end of meals, and many Portuguese people are truly addicted to expresso.

7. Portuguese are religious people

Not so much these days! Historically, the Christian religion is part of the foundation of Portuguese nationality, and for centuries it has been a structural part of society. Today, Portuguese are still mostly religious, but the separation between Portuguese people and religion is growing, just as the State has distanced itself from it.

8. Portuguese value their family

True! Like other nationalities in southern Europe, Portuguese people attach great importance to the family, both the closest and the furthest away. Christmas is the most important time of the year as it is at that time that the most separated families come together.

9. Portuguese people are short

Not anymore! 50 or 100 years ago, Portuguese were actually short people, the product of little varied and not so nutritious food. Today, as a result of better living conditions, the Portuguese are increasingly taller, but there are still differences for Danes or Norwegians!

10. Portuguese are lazy workers

False! It is true that the productivity of the Portuguese worker is lower than in other European countries, and Portugal has already had the intervention of the IMF more than once, but these facts are mainly due to the fragility of the Portuguese economy, and not to work habits. In fact, Portuguese people are among the Europeans who work more hours a week, and the portuguese emmigrants are always regarded as hard working.

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THE PORTUGUESE LANGUAGE

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The Portuguese language is a Romanic language that originated in Galician-Portuguese spoken in the Kingdom of Galicia and in northern Portugal. With the creation of the Kingdom of Portugal in 1139, and the expansion to the south during the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, the Portuguese expanded territorially, crossing the ocean to Africa, Asia and America.

Today, Portuguese language is spoken by about 280 million people worldwide, being the 5th most spoken language in the world, the 3rd most spoken in the western hemisphere and the most spoken in the southern hemisphere. Portuguese is the primary language in Portugal and Brazil (with small differences in writing, but with a very different accent), and is the official language in the former Portuguese colonies of Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and São Tomé and Príncipe, all in Africa, and East-Timor, in Asia.

Ten basic Portuguese words

Portuguese is, in many ways, similar to Castilian (or Spanish), but while Portuguese speakers understand Spanish well, Spanish speakers have, in general, greater difficulty in understanding Portuguese, since it has particular sounds. Here are ten basic Portuguese words.

Ten words that define Portuguese people

Ten Portuguese proverbs

Popular sayings are extremely interesting forms of the Portuguese language and capture much of the popular mentality and wisdom. Some of them rhyme, others do not, but all reveal ideas that Portuguese consider important.

1. A esperança é a última a morrer. (Hope is the last one to die.)

2. De boas intenções, está o inferno cheio. (Hell is full of good intentions.)

3. Pau que nasce torto, tarde ou nunca se endireita. (Something that is born crooked, late or never straightens.)

4. O pior cego é aquele que não quer ver. (The worst kind of blind is the one who doesn’t want to see.)

5. Zangam-se as comadres, descobrem-se as verdades. (When co-mothers-in-law get angry, truths are revealed.)

6. Amigos amigos, negócios à parte. (Frienship is friendship, business is business.)

7. Em terra de cegos, quem tem um olho é rei. (In a land of blind people, whoever has an eye is king.)

8. Quem ri por último, ri melhor. (The one who laughs last, laughs best.)

9. Filhos criados, trabalhos dobrados. (Children raised, worries doubled.)

10. Entre marido e mulher, não se mete a colher. (In matters between husband and wife, do not interfere.)