Northern Portuguese
Encyclopedia
Northern Portuguese is the oldest dialect of the Portuguese language
It is spoken in coastal northern Portugal from Viana do Castelo
to Porto
and stretching inland as far as Braga
. The region is considered the birthplace of the Portuguese language. It is popularly known as Nortenho (Northerner), but linguists traditionally call it Interâmnico or Interamense to differentiate it from other dialects spoken inland in northern Portugal.
The dialects of Northern Portuguese constitute one of the major groupings of the Portuguese language. There are two subdialects: Porto-Póvoa and Braga-Viana, each of these sub-dialects is further divided into Porto, Póvoa, Braga, and Viana. Every accent in the region is derived from the accents in these four hubs.
The Dialectal map of Leite de Vasconcelos, 1893-1897, proposed that the Northern Portuguese had three subdialects in a dialect, subdialect and variety organization:
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...
It is spoken in coastal northern Portugal from Viana do Castelo
Viana do Castelo
Viana do Castelo is a municipality and seat of the Viana do Castelo District in the Norte Region of Portugal. The city proper has 36,148 inhabitants and the municipality has a total population of 91,238 inhabitants over a total area of 318.6 km².It is located at the mouth of the Lima...
to Porto
Porto
Porto , also known as Oporto in English, is the second largest city in Portugal and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula. Its administrative limits include a population of 237,559 inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes...
and stretching inland as far as Braga
Braga
Braga , a city in the Braga Municipality in northwestern Portugal, is the capital of the Braga District, the oldest archdiocese and the third major city of the country. Braga is the oldest Portuguese city and one of the oldest Christian cities in the World...
. The region is considered the birthplace of the Portuguese language. It is popularly known as Nortenho (Northerner), but linguists traditionally call it Interâmnico or Interamense to differentiate it from other dialects spoken inland in northern Portugal.
The dialects of Northern Portuguese constitute one of the major groupings of the Portuguese language. There are two subdialects: Porto-Póvoa and Braga-Viana, each of these sub-dialects is further divided into Porto, Póvoa, Braga, and Viana. Every accent in the region is derived from the accents in these four hubs.
The Dialectal map of Leite de Vasconcelos, 1893-1897, proposed that the Northern Portuguese had three subdialects in a dialect, subdialect and variety organization:
- Alto-minhoto (between Minho and Lima rivers);
- Baixo-minhoto (between Lima and Douro rivers), that included the Variety of Porto and the Variety of PóvoaPóvoa de VarzimPóvoa de Varzim is a Portuguese city in the Norte Region and sub-region of Greater Porto, with a 2011 estimated population of 63,364. According to the 2001 census, there were 63,470 inhabitants with 42,396 living in the city proper. The urban area expanded, southwards, to Vila do Conde, and there...
; - Baixo-duriense (between Tâmega and Corgo rivers).