1. Preface

Of the languages with a European origin, Portuguese possesses one of the more fascinating histories. Because of the Portuguese naval expeditions in the XV and XVI centuries, the language has become one of the very few spoken across Africa, South Africa, Asia and Europe by more than 200 million people.

This text provides initially a short history of the Portuguese language, beginning from its Latin roots in Europe up to its modern day form. The text then details the current state of Portuguese in the diverse countries and regions of the world in which it is spoken today.

This text was not written by, nor for linguists. It has been written instead for a general audience that wishes to know a little more about the Portuguese language. It is a piece formed by collecting contributions from various sources and people, and for this reason, we apologise in advance for any errors or omissions that may be found and welcome any suggestions for improvement.