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Portuguese speakers understand Spanish? | ||
Tags: Portuguese | Spanish | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| Luso Hexaglot Senior Member Portugal Joined 6062 days ago 819 posts - 1812 votes  Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical) | Message 9 of 16 25 May 2013 at 3:30am | IP Logged | |||||
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I just noticed that you wrote about visiting Spain shortly. As a language "aficionado" you are surely aware that Spain is a multilingual country. As a regular visitor to the country (which I love), I'd like to give you a few pointers. Please forgive me if you already know all of them (maybe this will be useful to someone else).
1. An easy one to start with: what we call Spanish is really Castilian and, although everyone over there understands it, a few million people don't always use it, because there are a few strong regional languages (such as Catalan, Basque and Galician). 2. Due to a sometimes turbulent past, regional languages may be perceived as an important part of someone's identity. This is not so for most people, but there may be some awkward moments. 3. I heard a friend on the phone excusing himself upfront for speaking Spanish (we were calling from Navarra in order to confirm my hotel reservation in Barcelona). The phone call went on smoothly. 4. As a foreigner, you're automatically exempt of observing #2 and #3. 5. In some regions, such as Galicia and Catalonia, it's sometimes better to be Portuguese than, say, from Madrid. At least from a tourist's point of view. 6. If you're just going to visit Madrid or, say, Seville, all of the above is just a curiosity. If, on the other hand, you're going to Barcelona, Valencia or Bilbao, then it becomes pertinent. Should you go to Santiago de Compostela, Vigo or La Coruña, it becomes important. 7. With the exception of Galicia, it's best if you just use your Portuguese to understand stuff, rather than trying to express yourself. Or just use your common sense, that will do the trick. Disclaimer: All of the above is based on a large number of visits to Spain (probably more than 50). However, cultural closeness and mutual understanding may have rendered my visits a lot easier. Please take this for what it is: just my experience. 5 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| kujichagulia Senior Member Japan Joined 4848 days ago 1031 posts - 1571 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Japanese, Portuguese | Message 10 of 16 25 May 2013 at 2:57pm | IP Logged | |||||
Wow, now I don't feel so bad for going for only a few days. :) 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| kujichagulia Senior Member Japan Joined 4848 days ago 1031 posts - 1571 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Japanese, Portuguese | Message 11 of 16 25 May 2013 at 3:03pm | IP Logged | |||||
No apologies necessary. Thank you, Luso! I knew that Spain is multilingual (in fact, I'm quite interested in learning Catalan one day), but I did not know about all the other points you mentioned, so this is very helpful. I would not want to offend anybody during our trip there. We are going to Madrid and Barcelona. I don't think I will try to express myself in Portuguese, but perhaps some knowledge of Portuguese would come in handy if I need to read a sign, listen to an announcement or read a menu - things like that. I've heard a lot of good things about Spain (apart from the pickpocketing in Barcelona), so I'm looking forward to the trip. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Gomorritis Tetraglot Groupie Netherlands Joined 4279 days ago 91 posts - 157 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English, Catalan, French Studies: Greek, German, Dutch | Message 12 of 16 25 May 2013 at 4:19pm | IP Logged | |||||
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It's easier for Portuguese speakers to understand Spanish, but also some Spanish speakers might understand
Portuguese if they make some effort, especially if it's slow speech. Also, we tend to find Brazilian pronunciation easier to understand than Portuguese pronunciation. Some Spaniards are surprised by the fact that written Portuguese is so easy to understand, and yet they can barely understand a word in certain Portuguese conversations (especially in Portugal). But understanding might improve a lot with very little exposure, and probably any Spanish speaker that spends a couple of weeks in Portugal would boost enormously his understanding. I was three days in Lisbon last week and I was able to communicate in restaurants without problems. Rather than Portuguese, I was just speaking Spanish with some Portuguese features here and there, and it seemed to work. 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Flarioca Heptaglot Senior Member Brazil Joined 5883 days ago 635 posts - 816 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, Esperanto, French, EnglishC2, Spanish, German, Italian Studies: Catalan, Mandarin | Message 13 of 16 25 May 2013 at 5:28pm | IP Logged | |||||
I believe that the main reason is phonetics. Spanish has only five very clear vowels. If Zamenhof had decided to use not only a simple set of vowels but also a simple set of consonants, Esperanto would be even easier.
I've got the same feeling in the beginning of my Catalan studies. Very easy to read, but I could barely understand basic dialogs. However, it took me very few time to start understanding normal speech. 2 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Mad Max Tetraglot Groupie Spain Joined 5052 days ago 79 posts - 146 votes Speaks: Spanish*, French, English, Russian Studies: Arabic (classical) | Message 14 of 16 26 May 2013 at 11:38am | IP Logged | |||||
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Well, I am from Spain, and I explain some things.
I was several times in Galicia, the Basque country and Catalonia on holidays, and I always spoke in Spanish. Spanish is enough to speak to people from this regions. Everybody is bilingual in Spanish and the regional language. For example, I go to Catalonia every year, and I always use Spanish with Catalan people. They are friendly and they help you because Catalonia, like almost all Spain is a touristic place. So, Spanish (and perhaps English) are the most useful languages to use. Besides, there are a lot of people living in Catalonia (Galicia and Basque Country too) and they only speak Spanish (a lot of Latin Americans and Spaniards from other regions). Spanish is the most spoken native language in Catalonia, and not Catalan. On the other hand, Portuguese spoken by Portuguese people is difficult for us. We understand better they way Brazilians speak Portuguese. You should avoid nasal sounds and pronounce the vowels like in Spanish, more clear. 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Medulin Tetraglot Senior Member Croatia Joined 4669 days ago 1199 posts - 2192 votes Speaks: Croatian*, English, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Norwegian, Hindi, Nepali | Message 15 of 16 26 May 2013 at 6:04pm | IP Logged | |||||
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Brazilians understand Spanish without problem,
that's why Shakira, Thalía and Gabriela Spanic are big stars in Brazil, and everytime they're in Brazil, hordes of fans invade the streets by the hotel they're in. ;) Edited by Medulin on 26 May 2013 at 6:04pm 3 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| Luso Hexaglot Senior Member Portugal Joined 6062 days ago 819 posts - 1812 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical) | Message 16 of 16 27 May 2013 at 2:01am | IP Logged | |||||
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@ Mad Max:
Thanks for the update. When I read it, I went back to my own post. In spite of having been careful with my choice of words, I could have left a wrong impression. The main points, I believe, are that everyone in Spain speaks Spanish (which I also stated in #1), and that Spaniards are friendly (which is also true). I wouldn't have been to Spain so many times if it weren't so. And I'm sure it transcends tourism. As far as not using Portuguese for communication, I also agree (stated in #7). And since Galicia is not on the OP's menu, that settles it. As a final note, I'd like to say that the excuses for speaking Spanish while calling the hotel (of all places) in Barcelona always seemed to me out of place. Maybe it was just this guy's way, I don't know. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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