Portuguese vocabulary

Most of the Portuguese vocabulary comes from Latin, since Portuguese is a Romance language. However, other languages that came into contact with it have also left their mark. In the thirteenth century, the lexicon of Portuguese had about 80% words of Latin origin and 20% of pre-Roman Gallaecian, Celtic, Germanic and Arabic origin.[1]

Pre-Roman (Iberian and Celtic) languages of Portugal

Some traces of the languages of the native peoples of western Iberia (Gallaeci, Lusitanians, Celtici or Conii) persist in the language, as shown below. Many places in Portugal for instance have pre-Roman, Celtic or Celtiberian names, such as the cities of Abrantes, Braga, Braganza (Bragança), Cantanhede, Coimbra, Évora, Leiria, Setúbal, Sintra and several rivers like Ardila, Douro, Minho or Tâmega.

Basque:

An important Basque influence in Portuguese is the voiceless alveolar retracted sibilant [s̺], a sound transitional between laminodental [s] and palatal [ʃ]; this sound also influenced other Ibero-Romance languages and Catalan. The apico-alveolar retracted sibilant is a result of bilingualism of speakers of Basque and Vulgar Latin.

Iberian:

Projections on Iberian vocabulary, toponyms and derivations in Portuguese, indicate just a few dozen words in total.

Celtic:

Derivatives: amieiral alder woods, amieira young alder tree or hand-basket made of alder or chestnut shoots,
Derivatives: barcaça, barcagem, barcada, 'barge, flat boat with a sail', 'freight', 'boatload'; from Gaulish *barge-, cognate old Provençal 'barca', Medieval Latin loanword from Celtic 'barga'. Maybe from Greek 'baris' "Egyptian boat," from Coptic 'bari' "small boat." Meaning "flat-bottomed freight boat" dates from late 15c.
Derivatives: barrote [m] 'wooden beam'
Derivatives: berçário (hospital), new-born / infant ward (hospital).
Derivatives: bicar 'to kiss', debicar [v] '(bird)pecking'.
Derivatives: bornear [v] 'to align an object with the view, generally closing one eye, to put a gun/weapon to aim, ie.: to aim a cannon'.
Derivatives: bostal [m] 'corral for cattle', bostar [v] 'to expell dung, to say very unpleasant or sickening things', bostear [v], embostear [v], embostar [v] 'to cover with dung or manure, to dirty something', bosteiro 'dung-beetle, lamellicorn beetle'.
Derivatives: braça, braçada, abraço, abraçar [v]; 'tree-branch', 'breaststroke', 'hug,embrace', 'to embrace, to hug'. See further list of derived words:

There are numerous other Portuguese expressions and colloquialisms deriving from the word braço (arm) see also https://pt.wiktionary.org/wiki/bra%C3%A7o.

Derivatives: braguilha[7] [f] 'trouser-flier, braguinha [f] 'small guitar', bragal [m] 'coarse fabric whose plot is cord, underclothes, old measurement for land demarcation: Portion of a farm (7 or 8 poles) which served as the unit price in certain contracts, set of bucks and fetter', desbragar [v] 'to make dissolute, profligate, to drop your buckles', desbragado [m] 'riotous, foul-mouthed, indecorous, libertine, dissolute, immoral', desbragadamente 'indecorously', desbragamento [m] 'riotous quality, ribaldry, impropriety (behaviour), Bracarense 'relating to Braga, native of that city', brácaro 'a person native of Braga', bracamarte 'old claymore sword which was swung with both hands'.
Derivatives: bregiais, bregieira, bregieiros, bregio, breja, brejão, brejeira, brejenjas, brejinho, brejioso, brejoeira, brejões, brejos all relating to 'marsh, marshlands, moors', and also brejeiro, brejeirice, brejeirar [v], 'meaning naughty person, slightly saucy or cocky talk or behaviour'.
Derivatives: embrenhar [v] 'to go deep into a bush or forest, figurative: to go deep in thought', embrenhado 'someone who is lost in a deep forest or in thought, concentrating on smthg'.
Derivatives: brioso 'proud, brave, exuberant'
Derivatives:bruxaria, bruxedo 'witchcraft, sorcery', bruxulear[v] ,'flicker, shimmer'(of light)'a luz bruxuleia= the light shimmers', bruxo 'clairvoyant'
Derivatives: cabine cabin, gabinete office, telecabine cable-car, pessoal de cabine cabin-crew.
Derivatives: cadeira-de-braços 'armchair', cadeira-de-rodas 'wheelchair', cadeira de escritório 'office-chair', cadeirão 'sofa'
Derivatives: cambada, cambeira 'coil; crooked log for hanging fish', cambela 'type of plough', cambota 'beam'.
Derivatives: caminhar 'to walk'.
Derivatives: camisola 'jersey', camiseta 'undershirt, singlet', camisa-de-dormir 'nightgown', camisa-de-Venus or camisinha 'condom' (colloquial)

Derivatives: canastrada 'basket load, contents in a basket', canastrão 'big basket, pejorative for bad acting or public performance', canastreiro 'someone who makes straw baskets as a trade, canastrel 'small basket with a handle and cover', canastrice 'poor performance or show'.

Derivatives: cantoneiro 'road worker', cantonar[v] 'railway traffic control', recanto 'corner', cantinho 'small corner', Cantão, Cantonal 'Swiss Canton, relating to Canton's legal affairs or government, acantoar[v] or acantonar 'to hide, to isolate', canteiro 'vegetable field', cantonado 'engraved corner (heraldry)'.
Derivatives: carroça 'cart', carregar 'to load', carroçaria 'bodywork' (vehicle), carruagem 'carriage', carreto 'load', carrinha 'van', carro-de-mão 'wheelbarrow', carrossel 'carousel'.
Derivatives: carvalhal 'oak woods', carvalha, carvalheira, carvalheiro, carvalhiça, carvalhinha all related to different oak-tree sizes
Derivatives: carpintaria 'carpentry', carpintar[v] and carpintejar[v] 'to do wood-works', carpinteiragem 'carpentry works'.
Derivatives: charruar[v] 'to plow', charrueco 'a rough plowing machine'
Derivatives: chocar 'to bang, to shock', chocalho 'cowbell'.
Derivatives: combar 'to bend'.
Derivatives: cremoso 'creamy', leite-créme 'one of several popular Portuguese desserts, similar to custard', creme de barbear 'shaving cream'.
Derivatives: embaixador [m] 'ambassador', embaixatriz 'madam-ambassador'
Derivatives: [v] embaraçar, embaraçado 'to embarrass or cause shame to someone', 'embarrassed'. desembaraçado 'someone who is expedite, diligent', desembaraçar [v] 'to get rid of, to untangle', desembaraço 'resourcefulness'.
Derivatives: faial, faiado, faiar [v], desfaiar [v]; 'beechwood', 'loft', 'to insert, intercalate', 'to fall (down a rocky cliff)'
Derivatives: galgar [v] 'carving a stone to make it plain and regular'.
Derivatives: galhardete, galardão 'award' galardoar [v] 'to award, to recognise someone officially'; galã, galanteio, galante, galanteador 'gallant, charming, flattery, innuendo, flirtatious, seducer'; galhardear 'to show off, to be ostentatious', galhardia 'elegance, grandeur, generosity', Gala 'Gala, ceremony'.
Derivatives: garço 'colour: greenish-blue, greenish', garção 'large heron', also (rare) from French garçon 'waiter', garça-real 'Heron', garça-ribeirinha 'grey-heron', garça-boieira 'white-egret'.
Derivatives: Garrano 'Garrano wild horse-breed'
Derivatives: gatinhar [v],gatinha, to crawl (baby-crawl), 'pussycat, attractive female', several expressions/idioms like: aqui há gato, trocar gato por lebre 'English equivalent to 'I smell a rat', 'to rip someone off'.
Derivatives: goro 'unfertilized egg, failure, misfortune', gorado 'an egg which didn't hatch, a failed situation or unfortunate person'.
Derivatives: greve (via French 'grève') 'strike (workers' union)', greve-geral 'general strike', grevista 'someone who strikes or leads a strike movement', greve de fome 'hunger strike'.
Derivatives: lança 'spear', lanço 'small trap', lanceolado 'lanceolate', lançamento 'launch', lançada 'a spear-strike'
Derivatives: leiro 'small, ou unleveled, plot', leirar 'land working', leiroto, leiria 'place of small plots, allotments'.
Derivatives: lisonjear 'to flatter, lisongeio alternative spelling of 'flattery' , lisonjeado 'flattered
Derivatives: enlousar 'to cover with flagstones', lousado 'roof', lousão 'large flagstone', louseiro or loiseiro' 'stone-mason', enlousar [v]'to cover with stones, to make a stone wall, to trap, to trick or fool someone'.
Derivatives: meninice or meninez 'childhood, infancy, childishness', meninote 'nipper', [m].
Derivative: minhoquice 'unfounded suspicions, brooding on smthg unimportant'
Derivative: raio 'ray, thunderbolt, radius, thin and long metal piece'.
Derivatives: regueira 'small water canal', regato 'stream, gully, glen'.
Derivatives: rochedo 'big rock', rochoso 'rocky area'
Derivatives: savelha [fm] and alternative saboga 'Yellowtail', smaller fish of the same 'Alosa' family
Derivatives: tanoaria, tanoar [v], tonel cooperage, to do cooperage work, wine or beer barrel
Derivatives: toneira 'pot for obtaining butter from the milk', tonel 'wine barrel'.
Derivatives: fura-tojos 'marten'; tojal, tojeira 'place with tojos'.
Derivatives: tradar, tradear 'to drill'.
Derivatives: tranche 'slice', retrincar, retrinco 'to chew, to cut into smaller pieces', 'patch of a bigger piece', trinco [m] 'latch' (door, window, gate), from Gaulish, possibly from Proto-Celtic *trenco- 'small piece',
Derivatives: enveredar[v] 'to take or chose a path or direction in life or profession'
Derivatives: vidoeiral 'place with birch-trees'.

Projections on Celtic vocabulary, toponyms and derivations in Portuguese, indicate around 500 words in total.

Germanic languages

The Germanic influence (Buri, Suebi, Visigoths, Vandals) in Portuguese was small and often related to warfare/military topics. The influence however, also exists in other vocabulary and placenames such as Ermesinde and Esposende, where sinde and sende are derived from the Germanic "sinths" (military expedition). Toponym and toponymic surname Resende comes from "reths sinths", path to the council, the expedition's council.

Arabic

Projections indicate over 800 Arabic loan words. Today, this proportion has decreased as the language became richer, some words fell into disuse and newer borrowings from Greek, Latin and other languages entered the vocabulary.

The Mozambican currency Metical was derived from the word mitqāl ( مطقال ), an Arabic unit of weight. The name Mozambique itself is an Arabic name, from sultan Muça Alebique (Musa Alibiki).

Influences from outside Europe

With the Portuguese discoveries linguistic contact was made, and the Portuguese language became influenced by other languages with which it came into contact outside Europe. In Brazil, many placenames and local animals have Amerindian names, the same occurring with the local Bantu languages in Angola and Mozambique.

Africa

The country name "Angola" is from a Bantu word, N'gola.

Americas

Asia

The country name Macau is from Chinese A-mok, name of the city's temple.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "ASPECTOS DA CONSTITUIÇÃO DO LÉXICO PORTUGUÊS". filologia.org.br.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
  4. ↑ cf. Meyer-Lübke 294.
  5. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. BECLOS
  6. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1013
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
  8. ↑ Matasovic (2009) s.v.
  9. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. BORWOS
  10. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1235
  11. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1252
  12. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. KAGOS
  13. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1480
  14. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1542
  15. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1552
  16. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1550.
  17. 1 2 Meyer-Lübke 1541.
  18. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1721
  19. ↑ Coromines (1997) s.v. quejigo; Matasovic (2009) s.v. *casso-
  20. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 1830.
  21. ↑ Donkin (1864), s.v.
  22. ↑ cf. Varela Sieiro, Xaime. Léxico Cotián na Alta Idade Media de Galicia: A arquitectura civil. Santiago, 2008. ISBN 978-84-9750-781-3. pp. 205-206.
  23. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 2386
  24. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 2387
  25. ↑ Varela Sieiro, Xaime (2003). Léxico cotián na Alta Idade Media de Galicia : o enxoval. A Coruña: Do Castro. pp. 293–294. ISBN 84-8485-120-6.
  26. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *durno-
  27. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 2754
  28. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 448.
  29. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. GABIT
  30. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *gab-yo-
  31. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 3627
  32. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. GORIT
  33. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *gwer-o-
  34. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v.
  35. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v.
  36. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 4884
  37. ↑
  38. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. LĀGENĀ
  39. ↑ Coromines (1973) s.v. legua.
  40. ↑ cf. Meyer-Lübke 4911.
  41. ↑ Cf. Matasovic (2009), s.v. Lîwank-.
  42. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. OLCĀ
  43. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *folkā
  44. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 6050
  45. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. QEZDI
  46. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 6450
  47. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. frikā-.
  48. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. RIKS.
  49. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 7299.
  50. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. ROTIS
  51. ↑ Varela Sieiro, Xaime (2003). Léxico cotián na Alta Idade Media de Galicia : o enxoval. A Coruña: Do Castro. pp. 103–105. ISBN 84-8485-120-6.
  52. ↑ de Vaan, Michiel (2008). Etymological dictionary of Latin and the other Italic languages. Leiden: Brill. p. 534. ISBN 9789004167971.
  53. ↑ Coromines (1997) s.v. serna; Matasovic s.v. *aro-
  54. ↑ Coromines (1997) s.v. tascar
  55. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. TONDOS
  56. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 8987
  57. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. TOGIT.
  58. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 8570
  59. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *tarankyo-
  60. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 8585
  61. ↑ "tructa : (truite) • 4307 • L'encyclopédie • L'Arbre Celtique". Encyclopedie.arbre-celtique.com. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
  62. ↑ Coromines (1997) s.v. varga
  63. ↑ "BARGE : Etymologie de BARGE". cnrtl.fr.
  64. ↑ Meyer-Lübke 9166
  65. ↑ Ward A. (1996), s.v. WORÊDOS
  66. ↑ Matasovic R. (2009), s.v. *ufo-rēdos
  67. ↑ Meyer-Lübke s. v. *betulus, *betullus
  68. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Priberam Informática, S.A. "Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa". priberam.pt.
  69. ↑

External links

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