East Timorese Portuguese
Encyclopedia
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
) is a Portuguese dialect
Portuguese dialects
Portuguese dialects are variants of the Portuguese language that are shared by a substantial number of speakers over several generations, but are not sufficiently distinct from the official norms to be considered separate languages...
spoken in East Timor
East Timor
The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, commonly known as East Timor , is a state in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within Indonesian West Timor...
. It is one of the official languages of East Timor alongside Tetum.
History
Portuguese is a legacy of Portuguese rule of East TimorHistory of Asia
The history of Asia can be seen as the collective history of several distinct peripheral coastal regions such as, East Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East linked by the interior mass of the Eurasian steppe....
(called Portuguese Timor
Portuguese Timor
Portuguese Timor was the name of East Timor when it was under Portuguese control. During this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Netherlands East Indies, and later with Indonesia....
) from the 16th century. It had its first contact during the Portuguese discoveries of the East, but it was largely exposed to Portuguese Timor in the 18th century after its division from the rest of the island by the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
However, Tetum remained the main lingua franca
Lingua franca
A lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
of East Timor during Portuguese rule, although the most commonly used form, known as Tetun-Prasa used in Dili
Dili
Dili, spelled Díli in Portuguese, is the capital, largest city, chief port and commercial centre of East Timor.-Geography and Administration:Dili lies on the northern coast of Timor island, the easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands....
, was heavily influenced by Portuguese. Following the Carnation Revolution
Carnation Revolution
The Carnation Revolution , also referred to as the 25 de Abril , was a military coup started on 25 April 1974, in Lisbon, Portugal, coupled with an unanticipated and extensive campaign of civil resistance...
in Portugal in 1974, political parties emerged in Portuguese Timor for the first time, all of which supported the continued use of Portuguese, including APODETI, the only party to advocate integration with Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, had stated that it would support the right to "enjoy the Portuguese language" alongside Indonesian.
In 1975, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
invaded East Timor, and declared the territory as its 27th province in 1976, and Indonesian
Indonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
became the sole official language. The use of Portuguese in education, administration and the media was banned by the Indonesian authorities, and saw the language as a threat.
This was despite the fact that the 'People's Assembly', which petitioned President
President of Indonesia
The President of the Republic of Indonesia is the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Indonesia.The first president was Sukarno and the current president is Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.- Sukarno era :...
Suharto for integration with Indonesia, conducted its proceedings in Portuguese, under a banner reading "Integração de Timor Timur na República da Indonésia" (Integration of East Timor into the Republic of Indonesia).
The last school to teach in Portuguese, the Externato São José, was closed in 1992.
The reintroduction of Portuguese as an official languages caused criticism amongst Indonesian-educated youth, but according to the 2004 census, 36 percent of respondents said they had “a capability in Portuguese.”
Historical and Social Context
Portuguese was a colonial language in East Timor. During Portuguese rule, most Portuguese speakers were non-native speakers, mostly second-language speakers, because Tetum was the lingua franca of East Timor. All native Portuguese speakers were whites and mestiços. Although Portuguese was banned by Indonesian government after Indonesia occupied East TimorIndonesian occupation of East Timor
Indonesia occupied East Timor from December 1975 to October 1999. After centuries of Portuguese colonial rule in East Timor, a 1974 coup in Portugal led to decolonization among its former colonies, creating instability in East Timor and leaving its future uncertain...
, few Portuguese speakers survived, mostly non-native speakers, because most Portuguese had left. But when the Externato São José, the last school to teach Portuguese, was closed, Portuguese speakers dwindled. After winning independence from Indonesia, Portuguese was restored by newly made independent government of East Timor as one of the official languages with Tetum, along with Indonesian and English as "working languages
Working language
A working language is a language that is given a unique legal status in a supra-national company, society, state or other body or organization as its primary mean of communication...
". Portuguese as an official language in East Timor is spoken as second or third language. East Timor asked help from Brazil, Portugal, and the Latin Union to spread the teaching of the language, although its prominence in official and public spheres has been met with some hostility from younger Indonesian-educated East Timorese. Most native Portuguese speakers are mestiços. Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and other Portuguese-language countries such as Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
have supported the teaching of Portuguese in East Timor. Some people in East Timor have complained that teachers from Portugal and Brazil are poorly equipped to teach in the country, as they do not know local languages, or understand the local culture. Nevertheless, the late Sérgio Vieira de Mello
Sérgio Vieira de Mello
Sérgio Vieira de Mello was a Brazilian United Nations employee who worked for the UN for more than 34 years, earning respect and praise around the world for his efforts in the humanitarian and political programs of the UN...
, who headed the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor
United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor
The United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor provided an interim civil administration and a peacekeeping mission in the territory of East Timor, from its establishment on October 25, 1999 until its independence on May 20, 2002 following the outcome of the East Timor Special...
, was a Brazilian who not only established a close working relationship with Xanana Gusmão
Xanana Gusmão
Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão GCL is a former militant who was the first President of East Timor, serving from May 2002 to May 2007...
(The country's first President) as a fellow Portuguese-speaker, but was respected by many East Timorese because of his efforts to learn Tetum.
Phonology
The Portuguese dialect of the older people is similar to Brazilian PortugueseBrazilian Portuguese
Brazilian Portuguese is a group of Portuguese dialects written and spoken by most of the 190 million inhabitants of Brazil and by a few million Brazilian emigrants, mainly in the United States, United Kingdom, Portugal, Canada, Japan and Paraguay....
, like African
African Portuguese
Portuguese is spoken in five African states: Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe, Angola, and Mozambique. Like English and French, Portuguese has become a post-colonial language in Africa and one of the working languages of the African Union and the Southern African Development Community...
and other Asian dialects. The translation for “Please” is Por favor. It is po faˈvo in Brazil and East Timor, but puɾ fɐˈvoɾ in European Portuguese
European Portuguese
European Portuguese refers to the variety of Portuguese spoken in continental Portugal, as well as the Azores and Madeira islands...
. Although Brazilian and East Timorese accents are intelligible, local government and schools are strict to teach European dialect, like Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, Portugal, and PALOP use, and because European is the chosen pronunciation, the native pronunciation is closer to European than Brazilian even though it is midway between European and Brazilian dialects, so it is common for Brazilian, Portuguese, and Africans to hear [puɾ fɐˈvoɾ]. Portuguese phonology is not affected by Tetum and other native languages, even though it is not a mother language of the population.
Orthography
East Timor uses two Portuguese spelling patterns: European (which is used by Portugal, PALOPPALOP
The Portuguese-speaking African countries are a group of five African countries where the Portuguese language is the official language: Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe. Together with Portugal, Brazil and East Timor, these countries form the Community of...
, and Macau) and Brazilian, because the government asked help from Brazil to spread Portuguese to the country. Both spelling patterns are acceptable as long as they do not affect phonology.