Fado (Portuguese: destiny, fate) is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Portugal, but probably with much earlier origins. In popular belief, fado is a form of music characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor. However, in reality fado is simply a form of song which can be about anything, but must follow a certain structure. The music is usually linked to the Portuguese word saudadewhich symbolizes the feeling of loss (a permanent, irreparable loss and its consequent life lasting damage).
This is the video with sub titles in English of Mariza (Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈɾizɐ]) is the stage name of a popular fado singer. She was born on 16 December 1973 in Lourenço Marques, Mozambique. At the time, Mozambique was known as the Portuguese Colony Overseas Province of Mozambique.
Understanding the diversity of Brazilian society and the unique values and attitudes of
their citizens will help you develop better relationships and do business more successfully with your Brazilian colleagues.
Family– Brazil is a collectivist society which places family at the centre of its social structure. Families in Brazil tend to be large and close-knit, providing members security and connections. The importance of family is also evident in Brazilian business culture where often family members will often be found working for the same company, either family owned or otherwise.
Relationships – Similar to the importance placed on family, Brazilians depend heavily on relationships with others. It is essential therefore to spend the time getting to know your Brazilian counterparts, both personally and professionally. Knowing the right people will also help minimize any frustrations you might experience doing business in Brazil.
Time – Time in Brazil is approached in a very relaxed and flexible manner. Punctuality and precise plans are not common. Brazilians tend to live life at a slower pace, and this carries over into business which can result in negotiations taking much longer than you are used to. Meetings are also often delayed or cancelled without any prior warning.
Portuguese is orthographically similar in many ways to Spanish
Portuguese and Spanish are among the most widely spoken languages in the world today.It's not uncommon to find a Portuguese speaker talking to a Spanish speaker at an airport. Each one speaks their own language, both understand each other with just occasional need to stop now and then to understand the meaning of a word. The speakers communicate very well most of the time, as long as they avoid using slang words or talking too fast. Communication works because Spanish and Portuguese share around 80% of their vocabulary, most of the same grammatical structures, and things like the endings on nouns and verbs. Where communication breaks down, it's often because of differences in pronunciation. Listen to these two sentences, first in Spanish, then in Portuguese: "Meus irmãos alemães cantam bem"
"Mis hermanos alemanes cantan bien" When pronunciation isn't a factor, the Spanish speaker feels almost like he's reading his own language when he picks up a Portuguese newspaper. A recent study found that educated native Spanish speakers with no previous exposure to Portuguese could understand as much as 95% of an academic text written in Portuguese.
Portuguese speakers are generally able to read Spanish, and Spanish speakers are generally able to read Portuguese even if they cannot understand the spoken language.
Interestingly, French is more closely related to Portuguese than it is to Spanish even though Spain has a common boundary with France while Portugal does not. This was probably due to the Portuguese-French Atlantic sea trade, while any exchange between France and Spain was hindered by the Pyrenees Mountains and the totally unrelated Basque language. There are many example of Portuguese words being closer to French than Spanish, such as Portuguese "bom" ("good", masculine), and French "bon," but the somewhat different "buen" in Spanish. Overall, Portuguese and Spanish are more similar to each other than to French.
You may be surprised to hear that Portuguese is the fifth most widely-spoken language in the world. In addition to Portugal, it's the language of Brazil, and one of the few countries in South America where Spanish is not spoken. In Africa, you'll find Portuguese in Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, and Cape Verde. You can also hear it in Asia in places like the islands of East Timor, Macao in southern China, and Goa at the tip of India.
So, there are a lot of reasons why you might want to learn Portuguese. Above all, if you speak English and Spanish and you add Portuguese to your repertoire, you'll be able to talk to half the people in the world!
Official name– FederativeRepublic of Brazil Population– 198,739,269* Official Language– Portuguese Currency – Brazilian real (BRL) Capital city–Brasilia
GDP – purchasing power parity $1.99 trillion*
GDP Per Capita– purchasing power parity $10,100*
Overview
Brazil is a country greatly shaped by its diverse culture and geography. The largest country in South America in both population and area, Brazil has long been the source of important natural resources such as timber, sugar and coffee. The culture is a thriving fusion of Portuguese, African and indigenous Indian influences, all of which have left their mark on Brazilian society resulting in a rich, distinct culture. Brazilian culture is known for its hospitality, openness and colorful and rhythmic events such as Carnival. As Catholicism is the predominant religion in Brazil, many of these events have a strong Catholic influence. The diversity of Brazilian society is further emphasized by the prevalent class differences which permeate almost every aspect of society. Understanding the diversity of Brazilian society and the unique values and attitudes of its citizens will help you develop better relationships and do business more successfully with your Brazilian colleagues.
Key concepts
Family– Brazil is a collectivist society which places family at the centre of its social structure. Families in Brazil tend to be large and close-knit, providing members security and connections. The importance of family is also evident in Brazilian business culture where often family members will often be found working for the same company, either family owned or otherwise.
Relationships – Similar to the importance placed on family, Brazilians depend heavily on relationships with others. It is essential therefore to spend the time getting to know your Brazilian counterparts, both personally and professionally. Knowing the right people will also help minimize any frustrations you might experience doing business in Brazil.
Time – Time in Brazil is approached in a very relaxed and flexible manner. Punctuality and precise plans are not common. Brazilians tend to live life at a slower pace, and this carries over into business which can result in negotiations taking much longer than you are used to. Meetings are also often delayed or cancelled without any prior warning.
