Portuguese

[Anonymous]

My understanding is that Brazilian Portuguese is not the same as the language spoken in Portugal. I have also heard that the pronounciation is different. In fact, I know this for certain because I heard someone from Brazil speaking to a group of Portuguese people.

So when I think of buying another Berlitz Palm database, this time for Portuguese, and I read that it's for Brazil and Portugal, I wonder how that is possible.

Thanks.

 

[mikelove]

Honestly, the classification of the book as covering both Brazil and Portugal was made by Berlitz and not by us, so you'd have to ask them how it covers both. I don't know much Portuguese, but the spelling of most words appears to follow the European rather than the Brazilian form, so my guess is that it's modeled after the version used in Portugal. There are a few Brazilian alternate words listed in the text, actually - they're enclosed in square [] brackets.

The general impression I get is that while Brazilian and European Portuguese are mutually intelligible, good sentences in one can sound awkward in the other, due to word choices etc - given the inherent limitations of a phrasebook I don't think this is likely to make all that much of a difference, but something to bear in mind I guess.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks.