Portugal Language Guide for Indian Students

Spread globally in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal language has become the world’s seventh most widely spoken language. With over 200+ million native speakers, Portuguese is a popular language recognised globally. Are you interested in Portuguese language learning? Here’s your guide as a beginner. 

Are you planning to study abroad and study at Portuguese universities? Then pull up your socks to learn the Portuguese language to survive. Portuguese is the official language of Portugal and has the second largest number of native speakers. Check out everything about Portugal's language learning in this article including its history. 

What is Portugal Language?

Portugal is a European country that lies along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula, located in Southwestern Europe. The official language of Portugal is Portuguese, the seventh most spoken language in the world as per the Embassy of Portugal stats. Portugal language comes from the Romance language family. Portuguese shares closeness with Spanish language words because it has evolved from it. Following is the language tree to understand the origin of Portuguese below:

Where is Portuguese Language Spoken?

The Portuguese language is spoken in the majority of the countries in Europe, America and even in Asian countries. Portuguese speakers are widely spoken in these countries:

Portuguese Speaking Countries	Total Number of Speakers
Brazil (South America)	200,672,000
Angola (Central Africa)	13,026,000
Portugal (Southern Europe)	10,306,000
Mozambique (Eastern Africa)	3,528,000
Guinea Bissau (Western Africa)	171,000
São Tomé & Príncipe (Central Africa)	79,000
Cape Verde (Western Africa)	59,000
Equatorial Guinea (Central Africa)	20,000
Macau (East Asia)	14,000
East Timor (Southeast Asia)	3,000

(Source: Tomedes)

Based on Wikipedia, there are around 220 million native Portuguese speakers across the globe. Out of which approximately 30 million are second speakers of Portuguese. So overall, there are 250 million Portuguese speakers globally. 

Difference Between Brazilian and Portugal Language

Brazilian Portuguese speakers are more than Portugal language speakers, hence it is mandatory to understand how they differ. There are different varieties of Portuguese language apart from Brazilian Portuguese there is Angolan Portuguese, Guinean Portuguese and Portuguese Creoles. Since Brazilian Portuguese and Portugal language are differently spoken we have made a distinction between the two for reference:

Factors	Brazilian Portuguese	Portugal Portuguese
Pronunciation	Open vowels like /a, ɶ, ɑ, and ɒ/, syllable-timed speech	Nasal vowels and consonant clusters are more pronounced
Vocabulary	Some unique words and slang terms borrowed from America	Majorly European influence sharing some words with Spanish as well
Spelling	Less pronunciation changes (e.g., "carro" - car)	More spellings change and so do the pronunciations (e.g., "carro")
Second-person singular pronoun	"Você" (formal and informal)	"Tu" (informal), "Você" (formal)
Gerund	Not commonly used for the present continuous tense	Used for the present continuous tense
Prepositions	Some slight variations in usage (e.g., "depois de" vs. "após")	Generally similar

Portuguese pronunciation is not very different from Brazilian Portuguese. While the language may seem the same, there are just a few differences in Portuguese based on geographical differences. Thus, these are not dialects but are considered the standard form of the language just spoken differently based on the geographical location.

Top Reasons to Learn Language in Portugal

Are you planning to study in Portugal? Then as an international student, it is better to learn their official language - Portuguese. Apart from this, why students take to learning Portuguese is because of the following reasons:

• Portuguese is the seventh most spoken language in the world based on the Embassy of Portugal. Hence, interested students can learn the language easily by connecting with fellow Portuguese speakers.
• Portuguese ranks #7 on the list of FSI Difficult Languages - Category I set of some of the easiest languages in the world.
• Building vocabulary in the official language of Portugal is easy because the material is available easily everywhere for students.
• Portuguese universities mostly offer courses in Portuguese language. However, a small number of master's courses are also offered in the English language.
• By being proficient in the Portugal national language, students will be able to add an extra skill to their academic and professional CV.
• English speakers can learn the Portuguese language easily because quite a few English words have been borrowed. So Portugal language to English will be a cakewalk for students speaking English. 
• Once you can ace the Portugal language, you will be able to travel on your own to Portugal without a guide. 
• If students are interested in Portuguese culture, they can connect better with millions of Portuguese people by learning the language.
• Finally, those who learn the Portuguese language can be eligible for government jobs and go for translation jobs in embassies. 

While the list may be endless, Portugal language learning is at the student’s discretion based on his/her interest in either the language or studying abroad. 

How to Learn Portuguese Language?

Indian students who wish to learn Portuguese in India can opt for a couple of options. Classes in Portuguese for different levels of study are offered in India and the details are as follows:

Study Portuguese in India
Institutions Offering Portuguese	Levels of Study
Embassy of Portugal in India	A1, A2, and B1 levels (based on CEFR)
Delhi University, Department of Germanic & Romance Studies	Certificate & Advanced Diploma
Jamia Millia Islamia, Centre for European Studies	Certificate, Diploma & Advanced Diploma
Jawaharlal Nehru University, Centre of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Latin American Studies	Offered part-time
Camões - Centro da Língua Portuguesa, Panaji, Goa	Online Portuguese course
Goa University, Department of Portuguese and Lusophone Studies	Online Portuguese course

Apart from the typical classroom setting, students can also learn the Portuguese language part-time or even online.

Learn Portuguese Online

If you don’t want to attend classes in person at universities or institutions, then you can also learn Portuguese at home. The following are the online courses in Portuguese offered through the Camões, I.P., Lisbon, Portugal websites for students for different levels:

• Portuguese for Foreigners (A1 Level)
• Portuguese for Foreigners (A2 Level)
• Português para Estrangeiros (Nível B1)
• Português para Estrangeiros (Nível B2)
• Português para Estrangeiros (Nível C1)

These are official courses that are offered in Portuguese by official government websites. So students can opt for online learning if they are comfortable and learn Portuguese at home. 

Top Apps to Learn Portuguese

Apart from these resources for learning Portuguese language, students can also sign up for language apps or subscribe to YouTube channels to learn Portuguese. Check them out below:

• Babbel
• Memrise
• Duolingo
• Busuu
• Speak & Learn Portuguese

YouTube channels that popularly teach the Portuguese language include - Practice Portuguese, Portuguese Sounds, PortuguesePod101, Portuguese Lab and others. 

Tips to Learn Portuguese Fast

Now that you are into the game of learning Portuguese language, then consider the following tips to learn Portuguese language fast:

• First, identify the mode of learning the Portuguese language and get on with the learning.
• Make a schedule and dedicate your time to follow up after your Portuguese language classes for revision. 
• Practice the Portuguese words aloud look into the mirror and practice from time to time.
• Watch Portuguese movies with subtitles and English translations. This way Portuguese learning will get easier.
• Also, inculcate habits of listening to Portuguese music following the lyrics and then translating them. 
• Translate Portuguese to English and English to Portuguese to ace language learning. 
• Make your time management skills better if you wish to learn Portuguese language faster. 

Regular revision, reading, and brushing up on vocabulary and phonetics can prove beneficial for students to learn Portugal language with ease. 

Difficulty Level of Portuguese Language

For English speakers, Portuguese is still an easy language to grasp. But if the English speaker knows any Romance language, it is an added advantage for the students to learn Portuguese easily. The difficulty level of Portuguese language learning will decrease if the students have previous knowledge of Italian words or have French language knowledge or even Spanish. 

Portuguese has evolved from Spanish, thus, it is the closest to the Spanish language. It is also noted by linguists that those who know Latin, can also easily learn Portuguese language.

Finally, the difficulty level of Portuguese language will eventually lower as students progress in their new language learning. However, the ideal way to learn is by translating Portuguese to English frequently to understand the meaning. 

Basic Portuguese Vocab for Students

Portugal language learning can be aided with the use of daily use words. Some of the basic words to learn Portuguese language with English translations and pronunciations are as follows:

Portuguese Word	Portuguese to English Translation	Pronunciation (similar to English)
Olá	Hello	o-LAH (think of "oh la la")
Oi	Hi (informal)	OY
Bom dia	Good morning	BOEM dee-ah
Boa tarde	Good afternoon	BOA tahr-dee
Boa noite	Good evening/night	BOA NOI-tee
Obrigado(a)	Thank you (masculine/feminine)	oh-bri-GAH-do (a)
De nada	You're welcome	de NAA-da
Por favor	Please	por fa-VOR
Sim	Yes	seeem
Não	No	naum
Desculpa	Excuse me	des-COO-pa
Adeus	Goodbye (formal)	ah-DEUS
Tchau	Bye (informal)	chow
Como vai?	How are you? (formal)	COH-mo vai?
Estou bem	I'm fine	esh-TOU bem
Legal	Cool	leh-GAHL
Água	Water	AH-gua
Café	Coffee	kah-FEH
Cerveja	Beer	ser-VEH-ja
Vinho	Wine	VEEN-yo
Comida	Food	coh-MEE-da
Restaurante	Restaurant	resh-toh-RAHN-teh
Quanto custa?	How much does it cost?	KWAN-toh coos-tah?
Não falo português	I don't speak Portuguese	naum FAH-lo por-tu-GEHZ
Fala inglês?	Do you speak English?	FAH-la een-GLEHZ?
Banheiro	Bathroom	bahn-YAY-roh
Socorro!	Help!	soh-KOHR-ro!
Obrigada(o) por me ajudar	Thank you for helping me (masculine/feminine)	oh-bri-GAH-da (o) por meh ah-joo-DAR

Now that you have understood why it is important to learn Portuguese language, you can begin your Portuguese classes now! Good luck!