# Azorean Portuguese vs. other Portugueses?



## Hallick

Boa Noite,

Can anyone here tell me how Azorean Portuguese compares to Continental or Brazilian Portuguese? Specifically, the differences in the accent and everyday vocabulary? I would also be interested to hear about your personal impressions of the language from those islands if you have some, too. I have a friend with family from Pico who's curious about the language, so I'd like to help (with your gracious and much appreciated assistance).

Obrigado,
Hallick


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## spielenschach

*Azores*  - There is no difference, only in entonation.


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## Outsider

Hi. 

Although I don't know it very well, I have heard Azorean Portuguese a few times. I have some relatives who live in the archipelago.

Well, the first thing is that not all Azorean accents are the same. They vary from island to island, and within the larger islands. Most people agree that the thickest accent is the one of the largest island, São Miguel.

A thick _micaelense_ accent can be almost incomprehensible to an outsider, at least until he gets used to it. I've had that experience, myself. But after a while you do get used to their different intonation (it sounds like a very sing-song way of speaking), and to the very unusual sounds of some vowels.

Perhaps the most distinctive feature of Azorean accents is that, unlike probably any other Portuguese accents, they have front rounded vowels. Stressed "u" is pronounced more or less as a German "ü", like in French, and another vowel similar to a Scandinavian "ø" or a French "eu" also appears. This gives a distinctly "French-like" flavour to Azorean Portuguese. In short, it's closer to European Portuguese than to Brazilian Portuguese, but still very different from both.

I think most Portuguese people like Azorean accents. There was a time when accents from outside Lisbon or Coimbra were deprecated, and you may still find one or two jerks, but nowadays the attitude towards accents is generally positive.

You can listen to various accents of Portuguese at the website of the Instituto Camões.

As for the vocabulary, I'm afraid I don't know enough to talk about it.


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## MOC

Hi. I've lived for 3 years in Azores, in the São Miguel Island. The accent people usually refer to as from the Azores is the one from this Island. Inside the Island there are people with soft accents (closer to the shore) and people with really thick accents (not as close to the shore - the island isn't that big, you're never too far - and on poor neighborhoods).

When I was in college I shared a flat with, among others, a guy from Pico. His accent had nothing to do with what I was used to, and was a lot easier to understand (no trouble at all) than for example a friend of his from São Miguel that came to visit a couple of times (and I had lived in São Miguel before).

I think the description of the São Miguel accent was well explained by Outsider. Vowels are where the differences in pronunciation are clear. Consonants are pronounced the same way as in most continental portuguese accents.


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## ronanpoirier

I really like Azorean accent. There's the video of an Azorean singer on YouTube but I can't remember his name right now but I have the video on my favorites. I can send the link later when I get home.
Anyways, I don't see any major difference between his accent and mine. Even his "chiado" is very soft.  Besides, the song is pretty nice.

_o/


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## Outsider

Is it Sandro G., the rap singer?


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## ronanpoirier

No, Out, it's actually Chico Ávila, the lost gaúcho (talking more about the music style than about the accent here).

EDIT: I'm sending the link through IM, Otherwise Vanda eats my kidney. xD
Thanks, Out, for the warning.


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## Outsider

Ronan, estive a ouvir o Chico Ávila na Internet. Não duvido que ele seja açoriano, mas como muitos cantores portugueses da periferia adopta um sotaque próximo do lisboeta quando canta. Na canção que ouvi não há nenhum traço de sotaque açoriano.


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## VanAl

Não existe sotaque Açoreano mas um Micaelense na ilha de São Miguel, ilha principal deste arquipelago, nas outras oito ilhas, incluindo o Pico, as pessoas falam um Portugues perto do usado no centro de Portugal.
There is no Azorean accent but a Micaelense one spoken in the island of São Miguel (Saint Michael), main island of this archipelago, in the athor 8 islands, including Pico, people speak a Portuguese close to the one use in the center of Portugal.


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## ronanpoirier

Naquele banco de sons do Insituto Camões, achei a voz da senhora que fala num dos áudios muito parecida com a minha vó! Tanto no sotaque, quanto no timbre de voz. Mostrei para a minha mãe e ela concordou. 

E Out, eu não consegui perceber semelhança com o sotaque lisboeta naquela canção que te mandei do Chico Ávila, mas escutando uma canção do Carlos Albero Moniz chamada "Canção Para José Da Lata", nela percebi claramente os "sapatâia" e "intâira". E por ai vai.


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## Outsider

VanAl said:


> Não existe sotaque Açoreano mas um Micaelense na ilha de São Miguel, ilha principal deste arquipelago, nas outras oito ilhas, incluindo o Pico, as pessoas falam um Portugues perto do usado no centro de Portugal.
> 
> There is no Azorean accent but a Micaelense one spoken in the island of São Miguel (Saint Michael), main island of this archipelago, in the athor 8 islands, including Pico, people speak a Portuguese close to the one use in the center of Portugal.


Desculpe, mas eu já estive em outras ilhas, e lá também têm sotaque.

Sorry, but I've been to other islands, and people speak with an accent there, too.



			
				Ronanpoirer said:
			
		

> E Out, eu não consegui perceber semelhança com o sotaque lisboeta naquela canção que te mandei do Chico Ávila, mas escutando uma canção do Carlos Albero Moniz chamada "Canção Para José Da Lata", nela percebi claramente os "sapatâia" e "intâira". E por ai vai.


O sotaque do Chico Ávila é o que se poderia chamar "neutro": baseado no de Lisboa (ou num sotaque urbano genérico; a diferença não é muita), mas sem as características mais idiossincráticas da fala lisboeta. 
De açoriano não tem nada. (Ao menos quando ele canta. Muitas pessoas cantam sem sotaque, mas falam com sotaque.)


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## VanAl

people from São Miguel go to the athor islands to wark, living and for vacation, thats the reason whay you find Micaelense accent in athor islands but not amoung natives of that islands, if you go to Azores again talk abouth that with local people from the islands of the central groupe, they go to confirm what I said for sure.


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## Outsider

Who said anything about the _micaelense_ accent? 
I'm saying I have heard _other_ Azorean accents in the other islands. Yes, they are less divergent from continental Portuguese, but they are still distinct from any accent you'll find in the mainland.


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## VanAl

os restantes sotaques Açoreanos já os comparei com o de outra região de Portugal no #9, o unico que sobresai pela originalidade entre todos é o Micaelense mesmo.


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## Outsider

O sotaque açoriano que conheço melhor, para além do micaelense, é o de Santa Maria. Achei-o distintamente diferente do micaelense, mas ao mesmo tempo distintamente não continental.


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## ronanpoirier

Isto sim é açoriano! Envio um link para a letra da música. Acho que vai ajudar os vossos ouvidos desacostumados. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQiR8xYTw98

http://www.letrasdenovelas.com.br/musica/9188/ilha-dos-amores/ja-se-sabe-nuno-brito/


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## piperspearls

native Azorean here, the difference is that like the difference between England ( being portugal.brazilian) and America ( being Azores) Azorean is more like a slang of Brazil or portugal, more out-spoken and a bit brutal, rather than portugal proper


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