Thread: What languages that are commonly spoken?

Apart from the main language Portuguese, what other languages are mostly spoken? Do a lot of people there know English very well?

Apart from Portuguese people speaks English the most. Since English is not their mother tongue i find their speaking bit different.

Well I'm glad most speaks English as I won't find problem talking to the people if I do have a visit over there . I could learn some Portuguese as well.

Originally Posted by nuaeman

Apart from the main language Portuguese, what other languages are mostly spoken? Do a lot of people there know English very well?

In Brazil, English is not very popular. It is being taught in the school level but only a few achieve fluency. Spanish is more popular. It is better understood by most of the Brazilians. Apart from these, many minority languages are being used by indigenous people. Other languages like German, Italian,Japanese, Korean etc are used by immigrants.

I'm not sure but I thought Portuguese and Spanish are rather different languages or they are similar? Thanks for the info btw.

Originally Posted by basu06

In Brazil, English is not very popular. It is being taught in the school level but only a few achieve fluency. Spanish is more popular. It is better understood by most of the Brazilians. Apart from these, many minority languages are being used by indigenous people. Other languages like German, Italian,Japanese, Korean etc are used by immigrants.

I may be wrong as i don't stay there. Sorry, but what i found there , i have quoted. People spoke with me mostly in English as I cannot speak good Portuguese. Anyway , Thanks for correcting me.

I guess only some places like in major cities where more people speaks English while overall speaks Spanish.

about 99% speaks 1 language Portuguese. Sao Paulo you have a higher % then average that speaks English as the countries business center is located there!

If you speak Spanish you can improvise easily (in so called "Portuhol" ) just try to give your Spanish a Portuguese accent, you will get by after some exposure to Portuguese

German/French and Italian are spoken with the same frequency more or less.

Italian is more frequently spoken in the state of Sao Paulo and the south of Brazil

German is spoke a lot in the South of Brazil (Santa Catarina and others)


If you don't get a round with English then luckily people are very patient and will go at length to explain you with arms and legs what it is. (for illustration: my wife sometimes takes a long time to decide what to order and the waiter patiently waits until she decided her choice ;o)

Anyway don't loet language be the barrier, if you really feel unsure about the language barrier as a tourist you can stay in the better hotels where staff often speak sufficient English (though, do not expect the maids to speak English, front desk attendants and restaurant personal normally speak reasonable to good English) For city tours there are guides who speak all common European languages

For expats immigrants it's essential to get up to speed in Portuguese as even high-executives often not speak or are not comfortable in other languages. best is private lessons and much exposure to the language, force yourself to speak and test your skills with everyone, the taxi driver, garcons, etc. etc

Hope this will be a bit useful for anyone with questions!

Cheers

Hans
PS. I am already 6 years over here and allthough my accent is still strong I am getting around very well with my partial improvised language skills ;o)

@ biscoitoglobo

Thanks for the information! fortunately I speak French & English! :-)

It's good to hear that Brazilians also speak English. At least, I wouldn't have the problem in language barrier when I get there.

Nice to know that Brazilians speak English at least I am assured that language barrier won't be a problem at all

Now I know what to do the next time I'll visit in Brazil. Last time, it took me an hour and a half just to explain to the taxi man that I have to go to the restaurant that is located at the next city.

This happen last year. Because i only know how to speak English other than my native language here.

Originally Posted by nuaeman

Apart from the main language Portuguese, what other languages are mostly spoken? Do a lot of people there know English very well?

Most people speak Portuguese, then Spanish and a few will speak English. Your best bet would be to learn even basic phrases and possible responses in Portuguese for common tourist situations.

I missed my connecting flight from Sao Paulo to NYC and very few airline employees could speak English or Spanish.

Valeu

---------- Post added at 08:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:41 AM ----------

Originally Posted by anseldough

Now I know what to do the next time I'll visit in Brazil. Last time, it took me an hour and a half just to explain to the taxi man that I have to go to the restaurant that is located at the next city.

This happen last year. Because i only know how to speak English other than my native language here.

You : O senhor, eu vou ao restaurante na rua proximo

taxi: Valeu

You: Quanto custa?

taxi: cem ciento reais ($50)

you: Que?????

Learn portuguese and don't get scammed!

Ill go for English as our universal language and Mandarin because China is teh most populated country.

Originally Posted by KittyGirl

Nice to know that Brazilians speak English at least I am assured that language barrier won't be a problem at all

You could get by on English only...but most people speak Portuguese even in tourist trap areas.

Originally Posted by VilaIsabel

Most people speak Portuguese, then Spanish and a few will speak English. Your best bet would be to learn even basic phrases and possible responses in Portuguese for common tourist situations.

I missed my connecting flight from Sao Paulo to NYC and very few airline employees could speak English or Spanish.

Valeu

---------- Post added at 08:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:41 AM ----------




You : O senhor, eu vou ao restaurante na rua proximo

taxi: Valeu

You: Quanto custa?

taxi: cem ciento reais ($50)

you: Que?????

Learn portuguese and don't get scammed!

Yeah,.. Thanks a lot! This is what I want to do next. I'll apply for a course to learn Portuguese.

I know this will help me in the future.

All this fails to http://sourceradix.com/m/hit.html !

so the Lingua franca is portugese der, not English???? i'm still confused...

Originally Posted by Thiago

so the Lingua franca is portugese der, not English???? i'm still confused...

It is more likely to learn both language.

its really useful to learn a new language..helps you a lot..

Language is one of the strongest elements of Brazil's national unity. Portuguese is spoken by nearly 100 percent of the population. The only exceptions are some members of Amerindian groups and pockets of immigrants, primarily from Japan and South Korea, who have not yet learned Portuguese. The principal families of Indian languages are Tupí, Arawak, Carib, and Gê.
There is about as much difference between the Portuguese spoken in Brazil and that spoken in Portugal as between the English spoken in the United States and that spoken in the United Kingdom. Within Brazil, there are no dialects of Portuguese, but only moderate regional variation in accent, vocabulary, and use of personal nouns, pronouns, and verb conjugations. Variations tend to diminish as a result of mass media, especially national television networks that are viewed by the majority of Brazilians.

Originally Posted by nuaeman

Apart from the main language Portuguese, what other languages are mostly spoken? Do a lot of people there know English very well?

As i know English is their second language. Am I right?

Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking nation in the Americas. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil.

Other languages such as German, Italian, Polish and Ukrainian are spoken in rural areas of Southern Brazil, by small communities of descendants of immigrants, who are for the most part bilingual.

You´ll find people who speaks english in hotels restaurants and maybe by luck you can find some people wich can speaks english, the best is to learn some sentences in portuguese.

Originally Posted by paty_bh

You´ll find people who speaks english in hotels restaurants and maybe by luck you can find some people wich can speaks english, the best is to learn some sentences in portuguese.

Thank you now I know...

I guess one has to understand the basic conversational phrases in Portuguese to get by. I think there are certain areas in Brazil that widely practice other languages.

German, Italian and Polish are spoken in rural areas in southern brazil while in the immigration areas in Sao Paulo Korean, Chinese and Japanese are more apparent.

I think all these other languages exist du to the different immigrants that had been living in Brazil for the past few years.

it is more likely to learn more languages