Portuguese Language Blog

In-Laws & Stepfamily in Portuguese

Transparent Language — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:42:37 +0000

Yesterday at lunch, we were talking about in-laws, and the question of whether there was a word for a brother/sister-in-law’s spouse existed. And in Portuguese, there is a word! So I figured I’d do a quick post on in-laws and “step” type vocabulary in Portuguese! Next time you go to visit them, you can impress them with your fancy Portuguese names for them!

Mother-in-law – Sogra

Father-in-law – Sogro

Brother-in-law – Cunhado

Sister-in-law – Cunhada

Brother/Sister-in-law’s Wife – Concunhada

Sister/Brother-in-law’s Husband – Concunhado

Son-in-law – Genro

Daughter-in-law – Nora

Stepmother – Madrasta

Stepfather – Padastro

Stepdaughter – Enteada

Stepson – Enteado

What’s your relationship like with your in-laws (in Portuguese!)?

Interviews from São Paulo Fashion Week

Transparent Language — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:45:05 +0000

This month, São Paulo Fashion Week held its Winter 2012 edition, attracting celebrities and designers from Brazil and abroad. Today, we’re going to do a listening comprehension exercise listening to interviews from the event.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Where are they holding Fernanda Motta’s fashion shoot?

Click here to view the embedded video.

According to the editor, what did fashion week used to be like before?

Click here to view the embedded video.

What is MariMoon launching?

Answers

1. In São Paulo’s Centro, at the old São Paulo bank.

2. It was more amateurish, but it was more fun and people had more passion.

3. Her own nail polish line

Brazilian Yelp

Transparent Language — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:48:19 +0000

Ever wondered where to go to look for reviews of businesses in Brazil? There are a few places to look, but what’s sometimes called the “Brazilian Yelp” is a site called Kekanto, that has reviews of services and local business throughout the country. It’s also an app that can be used on mobile devices.

Kekanto is a start-up, created by a group of current and former students from the University of São Paulo that received funding from U.S.-based investment companies, including Accel Partners. Back when Kekanto was first conceived, one of the creators, Fernando Okumura, told the media: “Nossa missão é criar um circulo virtuoso de consumidores mais satisfeitos e empresas com melhores serviços.”

Here’s a brief explanation of the site in Portuguese from Terra:

O site funciona como um boca-a-boca online: os usuários avaliam os estabelecimentos e serviços que conhecem e suas opiniões ajudam outras pessoas a decidirem aonde ir ou o que comprar. O Kekanto também funciona como uma rede social, através da qual os usuários recebem as atualizações de seus amigos e interagem uns com os outros, comentando e gostando de avaliações”. A startup, de acordo com o TechCrunch, tem em torno de 3 milhões de visitantes únicos mensais e já trabalha em uma expansão para América Latina. Argentina, Chile e México são alguns dos países que estão no foco do Kekanto.

Here’s an explanation of why to use the site, from Kekanto’s Youtube channel:

Click here to view the embedded video.

And here’s an explanation of how Kekanto’s app works:

Click here to view the embedded video.

For foreigners, this can be really useful for restaurants, hotels, or excursions that you’re interested in doing, but want to check out before you go or book them!

Learning Tip: Informality

Transparent Language — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:32:33 +0000

Something that can be a bit confusing about spoken Portuguese is when to be informal, and when to be formal. In some ways, Portuguese is quite informal. Small talk is a very important part of communication, and expressions like tudo bom, tudo jóia, and tudo bem are commonplace in any conversation. So it can sometimes be tricky to figure out when to be formal.

You’ll find that even when doing business or speaking to strangers, they’ll sign off on the phone or on emails by saying “um abraço” (a hug) or even “beijos” (kisses). For English speakers accustomed to using more formal language in business, this can feel a bit unusual. But the key is to test the waters before you go the informal route. If you’re on the phone, see what the other person says before offering a hug or kiss, and if it’s email, go with a more formal greeting initially. Once you see how the person speaks to you, you can respond accordingly.

Another issue with formality is the use of você (you). Much of the time, this is what you would use to address others. But it’s also important to address certain people more formally, such as the elderly or those of high stature, like a business executive or government officials. In those cases, it’s more proper to call them senhor or senhora, rather than você. If you’re not sure how to address someone, it’s best to start out using the more formal approach. Then if you get to know the person better, it might be ok to start using the more informal word.

And finally, never forget to ask if you have a doubt! Brazilians are very appreciative of foreigners learning their language, and are more often than not patient with Portuguese learners.

Cordel Literature

Transparent Language — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:55:53 +0000

Cordels are an important Brazilian cultural form that come from the Northeast. A cordel is a string, and these poems, songs, or novels get their name from the way they are hung on a string at street fairs. They are typically printed in black and white with woodcut-style illustrations. While this folk literature comes from literary traditions in Portugal and Spain, it’s one of the oldest living literary traditions of its kind. Cordels are especially well known in Pernambuco, Ceará, and Paraíba. Some of the most famous cordels tell the story of outlaws, like “A Chegada de Lampião no Inferno” by José Pacheco. Read more about cordels in this article from The New York Times.

So, let’s read an excerpt from a cordel! This is “A Chegada de Lampião no Inferno,” about the famous Brazilian outlaw, Lampião.

Um cabra de Lampião
por nome Pilão Deitado
que morreu numa trincheira
um certo tempo passado
agora pelo sertão
anda correndo visão
fazendo malassombrado.

E foi quem trouxe a notícia
que viu Lampião chegar
o inferno nesse dia
faltou pouco pra virar
incendiou-se o mercado
morreu tanto cão queimado
que faz pena até contar

Vamos tratar na chegada
quando Lampião bateu
um moleque ainda moço
no portão apareceu:
Quem é você, cavalheiro?
Moleque, eu sou cangaceiro:
Lampião lhe respondeu.

- Moleque não, sou vigia
não sou seu pareceiro
e você aqui não entra
sem dizer quem é o primeiro:
- Moleque, abra o portão
saiba que sou Lampião
assombro do mundo inteiro.

Read the rest of the cordel here.