Department of Spanish and Portuguese

Ab initio Portuguese

Starting Portuguese from scratch

Most of the students admitted to Cambridge each year to read Portuguese can be classed as 'beginners' - a broad term applied to those having no knowledge whatsoever of Portuguese, those who may have done a GCSE or short language course, and those who have only limited oral familiarity with the language. Since Portuguese classes are quite small in size, you need not worry that you will find yourself falling behind in large classes.

We strongly encourage you to make whatever start on the language you can before coming up to university, as the course is very intensive and we need to cover a lot of material in just one academic year (20 teaching weeks).

Please consider the following suggestions seriously:

The basic work-book used in our beginners' classes (ONLY UP TO 2012-13*) is Thomas A Lathrop and Eduardo M Dias, Portugal: Língua e Cultura: Textbook (Los Angeles & Newark, Del.: LinguaText Cabrillo Press,latest edition). You may order the textbook through your local bookshop, or, with a credit card, from Brown Bookstore, Providence, Rhode Island (tel: 00 1 401 863 3168; fax: 00 1 401 863 2233).

It is expected that all students will have worked through Chapters 1-5 by themselves before starting. But don't feel that you have to be limited by this only go as far ahead as you can. Portuguese teaching aids and course books are now appearing in greater numbers. For a reasonably priced grammar with exercises have a look at R. C. Willis, An Essential Course in Modern Portuguese (Thomas Nelson, latest edition), Maria Emília de Alvelos Naar, Colloquial Portuguese (Routledge Kegan Paul), or Alexandre da R. Prista, Essential Portuguese Grammar (Dover). An excellent modern grammar, which will be useful for reference throughout a university course and beyond, is Celso Cunha and Lindley Cintra, Nova Gramática do Português Contemporâneo (Edições João Sá da Costa). A shorter version of this grammar book is Breve Gramática do Português Contemporâneo by the same authors (Edições João Sá da Costa). [PLEASE NOTE THAT FROM MICHAELMAS 2013 (TRIPOS 2014) THE FOLLOWING ARE THE RECOMMENDED BOOKS FOR AB INITIO PORTUGUESE STUDENTS, IN PLACE OF LATHROP'S:

* Leonel Melo ROSA, Vamos lá Começar! - Explicações e Exercícios de Gramática, Lisboa/Porto/Coimbra, Lidel, 2002, AND

* Leonel Melo ROSA, Vamos lá Continuar! - Explicações e Exercícios de Gramática e de Vocabulário!, Lisboa/Porto/Coimbra, Lidel, 1998.]

If you wish to buy a dictionary take a look at any of the suggestions given below, such as the Michaelis or the Porto Editora dictionaries. If you have a Brazilian-Portuguese Dictionary, do remember that there are often differences in spelling and grammar between the Portuguese spoken in Portugal and Brazil and in the African countries where Portuguese is the official language. Some of these differences in the works of Portuguese, Brazilian and African authors will be studied in our Part I scheduled Paper Pg. 1 (Introduction to the Language, Literatures and Cultures of the Portuguese-speaking World).

Apart from the grammar work, we very much encourage you to take advantage of some of the many options at your disposal to make a start on the language before you come to Cambridge. Here are some suggestions:

The World Wide Web is a very good source of language learning material: you can practise your grammar (BBC Languages and 'Centro Virtual Camões' have a good range of resources for beginners Portuguese), read the news (e.g. - 'Jornal Publico', 'Diario de Noticias' or BBC) and listen to the radio in Portuguese (Radio TSF).

If you do not have easy access to the Internet, there are many other ways to get acquainted with the language:

There are dual-language texts available: do try to read some of these to begin with. You will also be able to find CDs of Portuguese music - e.g. 'Marisa' - which have the lyrics in both Portuguese and English.

It may be possible through certain newsagents to order the weekly newspaper Expresso. Other newspapers and magazines, such as Público or Visão may be available from newsagents in large cities. Once you are in Cambridge, Portuguese newspapers are available for borrowing and consultation from the Modern and Medieval Languages Library or from the Leitora.

There are a number of Teach Yourself Portuguese Packages available in most bookshops. BBC courses with recordings, such as Discovering Portuguese and also Get By in Portuguese and Portugal: Lingua e Cultura (textbook, writing and language manual and cassettes) can provide a useful grounding.

If you have access to Cable Television, there is a Portuguese channel, RTPi, which you can watch, as well as the Brazilian channel TV GLOBO.

You may be able to attend evening classes in your area. Ask for details at your local public library.

A period of immersion in Portuguese language and culture is strongly recommended if, of course, time and money permit. There is a wide choice of courses running in Portugal during the summer months (and at other times of the year). Contact our Departmental Secretary for more information. Many colleges offer travel grants.

You may be able to stay in Portugal without going on a course (for example, working as a language assistant in a school, as an au pair, or on an exchange visit with a pen-friend), and this, too, can be extremely valuable.

After the first term of intensive language acquisition, you will begin to read a few short texts. An excellent postal service for foreign books is provided by Grant and Cutler Ltd., 55-57 Great Marlborough Street, London WIF 7AY, tel. 020 7734 2012; fax: 020 7734 9272. Also, in Portugal, books may be reliably and quickly ordered from: Livraria Barata, Av. de Roma 11, 1000 Lisboa, Portugal, tel. 00351218481631, fax: 0035121803344; or FNAC COLOMBO, Av. Lusíada, Centro Colombo, Loja A, 103, 1500 Lisboa, tel. 00 351 21 711 4200; http://www.FNAC.pt. You will also be able to order most of the books from Amazon UK.

All set texts are also to be found in the Modern and Medieval Languages Faculty Library, the University Library and throughout College Libraries. Some College librarians may, upon request, grant undergraduates from other Colleges reading rights to books they may have in stock and you are encouraged to request your own College library to buy set texts for your courses.

Our Spanish and Portuguese reading lists are sent every summer to the main Cambridge bookshops (Heffers and Waterstone's), so some times, you might be able to obtain the set texts from these shops. Heffers has a second-hand section in which some of the Portuguese books can be found some times. Also second year students do some time advertised their books for sale on our notice-board or through email via our Departmental Secretary.

For a description of the language papers you will be taking, see Beginners' Language Courses.

We hope that you will find these suggestions helpful. If there is anything on which you would like further advice, please contact the Director of Studies of your Cambridge College, the Departmental Secretary, Prof M Lisboa, St John's College (extension 38641), or the leitora (extension (3)35055).

Portuguese texts currently covered by ab initio students during their first year at Cambridge

• Machado de Assis: Selected short stories [Brazil]
• Miguel Torga: Selected short stories [Portugal]
• Mozambican poetry: selected authors on departmental website
• Lygia Fagundes Telles: Selected short stories [Brazil]

Recommended Dictionaries, Grammars and text books (at all levels)

Dictionaries*

• Michaelis, Dicionário Ilustrado Português-Inglês, over 78,000 entries Melhoramentos, 2005, São Paulo, Brazil, ISBN - 85-06-04676-9
• Michaelis, Dicionário Ilustrado Inglês-Português, over 78,000 entries Melhoramentos, 2005, São Paulo, Brazil, ISBN - 85-06-04676-8
• Dicionário de Português-Inglês (Porto: Porto Editora); 95,000 entries with examples showing words in use, ISBN 972-0-05321-6.
• Dicionário de Inglês-Português (Porto: Porto Editora); 37,000 entries, ISBN 972-0-05320-8.
• Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa (Porto: Porto Editora); 90,000 entries, ISBN 972-0-05001-2.
• Dicionário Prático Ilustrado (Porto: Lello Editores).

*Dictionaries can be found in Grant & Cutler (London) or order via internet. Smaller Port Editora dictionaries are also available.

Grammars and exercise books

• Celso Cunha and Lindley Cintra, Breve Gramática do Português Contemporâneo (Lisboa: Edições João Sá da Costa, 1995), ISBN 972-9230-05-6.
• Thomas A Lathrop and Eduardo M Dias, Portugal: Língua e Cultura: Writing and Language Laboratory Manual (Newark, Del.: Lingua Text, 1995), ISBN 0924566-20-3.
• Helena Ventura and Manuela Caseiro, Guia Prático de Verbos com Preposições (Lisboa: LIDEL, 1996), ISBN 972-9018-77-4.
• Verbos Portugueses (Porto: Porto Editora); with 651 paradigmatic conjugations, ISBN 972-0-05081-0.
• Leonel Melo Rosa, Vamos lá Começar! Exercise Book for BEGINNERS (Lisboa: LIDEL, latest edition).

Text books

• For beginners: [n.b. ONLY FOR 2013-14] Thomas A. Lathrop and Eduardo M. Dias, Portugal, Língua e Cultura (Los Angeles & Newark, Del.: LinguaText Cabrillo Press, 1995), ISBN 0-942566-19-X. [PLEASE NOTE THAT FROM MICHAELMAS 2013 (TRIPOS 2014) THE FOLLOWING ARE THE RECOMMENDED BOOKS FOR AB INITIO PORTUGUESE STUDENTS, IN PLACE OF LATHROP'S:

  * Leonel Melo ROSA, Vamos lá Começar! - Explicações e Exercícios de Gramática, Lisboa/Porto/Coimbra, Lidel, 2002, AND

  * Leonel Melo ROSA, Vamos lá Continuar! - Explicações e Exercícios de Gramática e de Vocabulário!, Lisboa/Porto/Coimbra, Lidel, 1998.]

• For advanced students: A. Avelar and H. Dias, Lusofonia (Lisboa: LIDEL). Textbook (1995), ISBN 972-9018-53-7; Exercise book (1997), ISBN 972-9018-78-2; Cassette (available soon).

Auxiliary material

• Celso Cunha and Lindley Cintra, Nova Gramática do Português Contemporâneo (Lisboa: Edições João Sá da Costa); advanced grammar
• R. C. Willis, An Essential Course in Modern Portuguese (Thomas Nelson, most recent edition).
• Maria Emília de Alvelos Naar, Colloquial Portuguese (Routledge Kegan Paul).
• Alexandre da R. Prista, Essential Portuguese Grammar (Dover).

Cambridge bookshops (Heffers and Waterstone's) are aware of our reading lists. You may be able to purchase second-hand copies of some of the books from Heffers (tel. 01223 568568). You might also like to try online book-sellers like Amazon, alibris or abebooks.