Guinean Portuguese

Guinean Portuguese

Guinean Portuguese (Português Guineense in Portuguese) is a Portuguese dialect spoken in Guinea-Bissau. It is the official language and one of the national languages of Guinea-Bissau.

Portuguese was used as a communication between Portuguese settlers and different black tribes (most are Fulas, Mandingos, Mandyakos, and Balante) before the nation became a permanent Portuguese overseas territory. Portuguese speakers were large during Portuguese rule, although mestiços and most blacks speak Portuguese Creole called Guinea-Bissau Creole, which is a more widely spoken lingua franca of the nation. After independence, when most Portuguese left, Portuguese speakers were reduced to less than 10% because of civil war that affected education, although it remained the official language of the country. When Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries was founded in 1996, it helped Guinea-Bissau in education aside from peace talks there. Many Portuguese and PALOP (mostly Angolan) teachers entered to increase Portuguese fluency among blacks. In 2005, to increase Portuguese fluency more, there was an agreement between Guinean officials and Instituto Camões, which has a center first in the capital, Bissau, to open centers in other towns of the country: Canchungo, Ongoré, Mansoa, Bafatá, Gabú, Buba, Catió, Bolama, Bubaque, and Quinhamel. The Portuguese speakers increased to 14%.

Guinean dialect was an Old Portuguese similar to Brazilian Portuguese, but even it is understandable to Brazilian dialect when it is heard from Brazilian TV stations, government and schools require students to learn modern Standard European Portuguese, like people of Portugal, Macau, East Timor, and the rest of PALOP do. So Guinean accent is more similar to European than Brazilian dialects. Spelling and grammar are also European.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Portuguese language — Portuguese português Pronunciation [purtuˈɣeʃ] (EP) [poʁtuˈges][1] (BP) [poɾtu …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese dialects — are variants of the Portuguese language that are shared by a substantial number of speakers over several generations, but are not sufficiently distinct from the official norms to be considered separate languages. The differences between… …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese Colonial War — Portuguese troops embarking to go to the Colonial War Date 1961–1974 …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese escudo — escudo português (Portuguese) …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese invasion of Guinea, 1970 — Infobox Military Conflict conflict =Portuguese invasion of Guinea, 1970 partof =Guinea Bissau War of Independence caption = Memorial to the 22 November 1970 attack in Conakry. date = 22 November 1970 place = Conakry, Guinea territory = None… …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese Guinea — Guiné Portuguesa Portuguese Guinea Colony; Overseas territory ; State ← …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese cuisine — Traditional dry bacalhau (Portuguese for codfish). Portuguese cuisine is characterised by rich, filling and full flavored dishes and is closely related to Mediterranean cuisine. The influence of Portugal s former colonial possessions is also… …   Wikipedia

  • Guinean Democratic Movement — The Guinean Democratic Movement (Portuguese: Movimento Democrático Guineense) is a political party in Guinea Bissau. It was founded on February 14, 2003 and is led by Silvestre Alves.[1] In the legislative election held on 28 March 2004, the… …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese Guinean escudo — Infobox Currency iso code = using countries = Portuguese Guinea image 1 = image title 1 = inflation rate = inflation source date = subunit ratio 1 = 1/100 subunit name 1 = centavo symbol = used coins = 10, 20, 50 centavos, 1, 2½, 5, 10, 20… …   Wikipedia

  • Portuguese Guinean real — The real (plural réis) was the currency of Portuguese Guinea until 1914. It was equal to the Portuguese real. Paper money specifically for Portuguese Guinea was first issued in 1909, supplementing Portuguese currency. Denominations were between… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”