| − | '''Portuguese''', also ''português'' or ''língua portuguesa'', is a [[Romance language]] which originated in [[Portugal]]. Like all Romance languages, Portugese originated from [[Latin]], and the first known use of a distinct Portuguese was around 900 AD<ref>http://www.linguata.com/portuguese/History_of_Portuguese.html</ref>. Portuguese is widely spoken in [[Portugal]], [[Angola]], [[Mozambique]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[East Timor]], [[Equatorial Guinea]], [[Cape Verde]], and [[Brazil]]. It has about 230 million speakers worldwide, making it the seventh most widely spoken language in the world.<ref>[http://www.linguaportuguesa.ufrn.br/ A lingua portuguesa] (in Portuguese)</ref> | + | '''Portuguese''', also ''português'' or ''língua portuguesa'', is a [[Romance language]] which originated in [[Portugal]]. Like all Romance languages, Portugese originated from [[Latin]], and the first known use of a distinct Portuguese was around 900 AD.<ref>http://www.linguata.com/portuguese/History_of_Portuguese.html</ref> Portuguese is widely spoken in [[Portugal]], [[Angola]], [[Mozambique]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[East Timor]], [[Equatorial Guinea]], [[Cape Verde]], and [[Brazil]]. It has about 230 million speakers worldwide, making it the seventh most widely spoken language in the world.<ref>[http://www.linguaportuguesa.ufrn.br/ A lingua portuguesa] (in Portuguese)</ref> |
| | Portuguese is closely related to [[Spanish]]; it looks similar on the page but sounds very different. Portuguese has more vowel sounds than Spanish. Portuguese speakers can easily understand Spanish, but Spanish speakers usually have a hard time speaking or understanding Portuguese. There are also differences in [[vocabulary]] and [[pronunciation]] between European and South American Portuguese, much as there are between [[American English]] and [[British English]]. | | Portuguese is closely related to [[Spanish]]; it looks similar on the page but sounds very different. Portuguese has more vowel sounds than Spanish. Portuguese speakers can easily understand Spanish, but Spanish speakers usually have a hard time speaking or understanding Portuguese. There are also differences in [[vocabulary]] and [[pronunciation]] between European and South American Portuguese, much as there are between [[American English]] and [[British English]]. |