The importance of Portuguese translation
Portuguese is, along with Spanish, the fastest growing European language in the world, just behind English. This is because it is the seventh most spoken language in the world, with 270 million speakers and counting.
It is the official language of nine countries including: Portugal, Brazil, Guinea-Bissau, Angola, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe and East Timor. In Macau, it is also a co-official language along with Chinese.
But Portugal’s Portuguese is not the language spoken all over the world. This language has the characteristic of being pluricentric, i.e. it is a language with two spoken standards and two written standards. Thus, two main groups of dialects coexist when it comes to Portuguese translation: the dialect of the Iberian Peninsula (European Portuguese) and the dialect of Brazil (Brazilian Portuguese).
Portugal as an economic and cultural engine
Between 1991 and 2000, Portugal’s economic development was higher than the European Union average, making it an important driving force for the European Union. As a result, Portuguese translation has played an indispensable role in transmitting the unique culture that characterizes it.
Portugal has exported great celebrities, not only to Europe, but all over the world. For example, the soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, the actor Joaquim de Almeida (Fast and Furious 5) or even the comedian María de Medeiros.
Portuguese translation history
In 1514 authors used the self-translation method to make their works reach more people. This method was mainly used in the field of lyric poetry. An example of this is the work Meditación de la Pasión de Cristo N. S. metrificada por un fraile portugués de la provincia de la Piedad.
This proves that Portuguese translation was closely linked to Christianity and the dissemination of this type of religious works. Today, this expansion of language and culture through translation from Portuguese is due to the great economic growth of the last decade.
Portuguese translation currently
Nowadays, Portuguese translation is more common at the international level thanks to the strengthening economic expansion. And this is not something we should overlook.
Even though, as Spaniards, we can understand almost 80% of what we read or hear, Portuguese translation is still needed. This will help us to transmit its culture and ideas correctly. According to a study by the Camoes Institute, Portuguese is one of the most influential languages in the world today. At Translinguo Global®, we believe this means that our Portuguese translation service is highly valuable.
