- For the Site, see Ling: Learn Portuguese.
- Available both on the browser and as an iPhone App.
- I've found the initial page-load to be a bit slow in the browser (at least using Chrome), so anyone clicking the above link may need to be somewhat patient.
- Ling Introduction:
- Portuguese is quite unique. It is not too often that the country where a language originally comes from is not even in the top three for the number of speakers. While Portugal is a relatively small country, there is still plenty of beautiful sights and experiences to discover. Across the Portuguese speaking world, there are many, many more experiences to be had, which is why many people choose to learn Portuguese.
- Portuguese is closely related to Spanish and also the other Romance languages. However, it still has many unique elements that make it a distinct language. Due to the Portuguese Empire, it has spread around the world, most notably in South America, Africa and Asia. This has led to the development of several different dialects, with Brazilian Portuguese being amongst the most different. All make use of the Latin Alphabet with the addition of five diacritics.
- Portuguese maintains many more elements from its Latin roots than other Romance languages when it comes to verbs. Despite that, its grammar is very similar to that of Spanish. It has two grammatical genders, with nouns, pronouns, adjectives and articles that are moderately inflected. In terms of structure, it generally follows an SVO order.
- Portuguese provides an interesting case study into language. While originating from Portugal, it made its way to Brazil which is now by far the largest Portuguese speaking country. They both make for great holiday destinations while having very different cultures. Unlocking more opportunities in these countries will play a large role in how much you enjoy your stay there. As such, learning Portuguese is very much worth while.
Text Colour Conventions (see disclaimer)
- Blue: Text by me; © Theo Todman, 2023
- Mauve: Text by correspondent(s) or other author(s); © the author(s)