Portuguese Minor
Minor in Portuguese Language and Lusophone Cultures
The minor in Portuguese is designed to offer both linguistic and cultural knowledge through comparative analysis of the cultures and literatures of Portuguese – speaking regions. Students will study the Lusophone literatures and cultures of Brazil, as well as Portugal, Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Principe, Guiné Bissao, Goa, Macau and the United States. They will also consider Lusophone cultures from transnational and translinguistic perspectives, relating them to other ethnic, cultural and linguistic traditions such as Spanish, English, French, Native American, African and African-American, etc.
The minor will prepare students to communicate in Portuguese and further the critical awareness of cultural differences. It will be useful for a variety of students in business, international relations, or others who plan to pursue graduate studies in Cultural and Literary Studies, Latin American Studies, Comparative Literature, Film, etc. Students majoring in Spanish are also likely to be inclined to pursue a minor in Portuguese.
The minor will draw from faculty and courses in several NU departments and programs, such as Spanish, History and African American Studies.
Students are encouraged to study abroad in the target cultures and may count up to three courses from Study Abroad towards the minor.
The minor in Portuguese enables students to acquire Intermediate – High (ACTFL, 1999) competence in oral and written Portuguese and to explore the literatures and cultures of Brazil, Lusophone Africa and/or Portugal.
Prerequisite:
Portuguese 112-3 (Intensive Portuguese); or Portuguese 121-3 (Intermediate Portuguese); or Portuguese 115-2 (Portuguese for Spanish Speakers); or placement at the 200-level in Portuguese language. Students who meet these requirements and wish to declare a minor in Lusophone Cultures should meet with a department adviser.
Requirements:
Six courses are required to complete the minor in Portuguese, including:
- PORT 201 (Reading and Speaking) and PORT 202 (Reading and Writing)
- At least two courses in the Portuguese program at the 200 level or above, one of which must be on the 300 – level.
- Up to two electives (at least one of which must be on the 300-level) to be chosen from: (1) Courses in the Portuguese program; (2) Courses in the Spanish program with a significant Brazilian or Portuguese component, provided that the final paper for the course focuses entirely or primarily on a Brazilian or Portuguese topic; (3) Courses in other departments or programs (e.g., History, Latin American Studies, Comparative Literary Studies, etc.) with a significant Brazilian, Portuguese, or Lusophone African component.
- At least three courses must be at the 300-level.