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Where Are You From?

countries in portuguese
TagsCountries Definite and Indefinite Articles Greetings Introductions Places Prepositions
10 min read

In this Learning Note we’ll cover 3 main topics:

  • đŸ—ș Countries in Portuguese (so you can say where you’re from!)
  • đŸ€“ Whether to use a definite article (o or a) before the name of your country
  • 🗣 How to state which language(s) you speak and your nationality (both male and female forms)

You may have already learned how to greet people and introduce yourself in European Portuguese, so now you can get more specific when talking about where you’re from, or where you’re going.
As you know, most words in Portuguese have a gender, and it’s the same for paísescountries , so we’ve grouped these by “masculine” countries, “feminine” countries, and “neutral” countries.
Note: We have only included a small selection of countries and languages below. Let us know if we didn’t include yours yet and we’ll work on adding it!

♂ “Masculine” Countries

  • o BrasilBrazil
  • o CanadĂĄCanada
  • o ChileChile
  • EgitoEgypt
  • os Emirados Árabes UnidosUnited Arab Emirates
  • o EquadorEcuador
  • os Estados Unidosthe United States
  • o GanaGhana
  • o IraqueIraq
  • o IrĂŁoIran – this is o IrĂŁ in Brazil
  • o JapĂŁoJapan
  • o LuxemburgoLuxembourg
  • o MĂ©xicoMexico
  • o NepalNepal
  • o PaquistĂŁoPakistan
  • os PaĂ­ses Baixosthe Netherlands *See below for alternative
  • o QuĂ©niaKenya
  • o Reino Unidothe United Kingdom
  • o Sri LankaSri Lanka
  • o UruguaiUruguay
  • o VietnameVietnam – this is o VietnĂŁ in Brazil
  • o ZimbĂĄbueZimbabwe

♀ “Feminine” Countries

  • a África do SulSouth Africa
  • a ÁustriaAustria
  • a AlemanhaGermany
  • a ArgentinaArgentina
  • a AustrĂĄliaAustralia
  • a BulgĂĄriaBulgaria
  • a BĂ©lgicaBelgium
  • a ChinaChina
  • a ColĂŽmbiaColombia
  • a DinamarcaDenmark
  • a EscĂłciaScotland
  • as Filipinasthe Philippines
  • a FinlĂąndiaFinland
  • a GrĂ©ciaGreece
  • a HolandaHolland, the Netherlands *Often used to refer to the Netherlands as a whole
  • a HungriaHungary
  • a ÍndiaIndia
  • a IndonĂ©siaIndonesia
  • a IrlandaIreland
  • a ItĂĄliaItaly
  • a NigĂ©riaNigeria
  • a NoruegaNorway
  • a Nova ZelĂąndiaNew Zealand
  • a PolĂłniaPoland
  • a RepĂșblica Checa ou ChĂ©quiaThe Czech Republic or Czechia
  • a RomĂ©niaRomania
  • a RĂșssiaRussia
  • a SuĂ©ciaSweden
  • a SuíçaSwitzerland
  • a TailĂąndiaThailand
  • a TurquiaTurkey
  • a UcrĂąniaUkraine
  • a VenezuelaVenezuela

âšȘ “Neutral” Countries

Definite Articles
 Is it em or no? De or do?

As you may have noticed, masculine countries are preceded by o or os, feminine countries by a or as, and neutral countries have no definite article.
So how do you know whether a country, city, region, or other location gets a definite article or not? Well, the rules aren’t very straightforward, and there are many exceptions, so most learners choose to learn these individually over time. Luckily, it’s a small detail, so you will still be understood if you say o instead of a, or include / don’t include an article. 😉
That said, if you’re interested, here are a few general guidelines that will help you out sometimes:

  • Countries that end in -a – Usually feminine
  • Countries that end in -o – Usually masculine
  • Countries that end in -ĂĄ, e, Ă©, u, i, ai, ĂŁ, im, ĂŁo – Usually masculine
  • Countries that end in a consonant (unless that consonant is there because the the word is plural) – Usually masculine
  • Places that derive from common nouns – Most include a definite article. Examples: o Porto (porto is also a common noun meaning port/harbour) and os Estados Unidos (estados means states)
  • Regions – Most regions include a definite article (e.g. o Algarve)
  • Cities – Most cities do NOT include a definite article
  • Portuguese-speaking countries – Most do NOT include a definite article, like Portugal, but there are exceptions, like o Brasil

Like we said, there are many exceptions, as you’ll notice if you browse through the lists of countries above.

Also note that definite articles form contractions when combined with certain prepositions, such as emin and defrom . So when you start putting these into sentences, you could end up with em, no, na, do, da, etc. preceding the name of the place. Here are a few examples:

  • em Portugalin Portugal
  • em Londresin London
  • em Lisboain Lisbon
  • no Portoin Porto
  • no Algarvein the Algarve
  • do CanadĂĄfrom Canada
  • da Alemanhafrom Germany
  • dos Estados Unidosfrom the United States

đŸ€Ż If your head is spinning, don’t worry! Just learn how to handle the countries / places you talk about most often. For the rest, you can pick it up gradually.

Stating Your Nationality and Language

Using an adjective to state your nationality in Portuguese will require a slight modification, depending on whether you are male or female. Many of these follow similar rules, so we’ll just include a few examples below.
Then, to say which language you speak, it’s often the same as the masculine version of the nationality. (The obvious exceptions are the many, many languages that differ from the name of the country/countries where they are spoken.)
Notice that in Portuguese, countries are capitalized, but nationalities and languages are not capitalized.

  • Sou de PortugalI am from Portugal Sou portuguĂȘsI am Portuguese(masc.) Sou portuguesaI am Portuguese(fem.) Falo portuguĂȘsI speak Portuguese
  • Sou do BrasilI am from Brazil Sou brasileiroI am Brazilian(masc.) Sou brasileiraI am Brazilian(fem.)
  • Sou dos Estados UnidosI am from the United States Sou americanoI am American(masc.) Sou americanaI am American(fem.) Falo inglĂȘsI speak English
  • Sou do CanadĂĄI am from Canada Sou canadianoI am Canadian(masc.) Sou canadianaI am Canadian(fem.) Falo inglĂȘs e francĂȘsI speak English and French
  • Sou do Reino UnidoI am from the United Kingdom Sou inglĂȘsI'm English(masc.) Sou inglesaI'm English(fem.) Sou britĂąnicoI'm British(masc.) Sou britĂąnicaI'm British(fem.)
  • Sou do JapĂŁoI am from Japan Sou japonĂȘsI am Japanese(masc.) Sou japonesaI am Japanese(fem.) Falo japonĂȘsI speak Japanese
  • Sou da EscĂłciaI’m from Scotland Sou escocĂȘsI’m Scottish(masc.) Sou escocesaI’m Scottish(fem.)

Ready to try it out? Leave a comment below in Portuguese, telling us where you’re from and which language(s) you speak! 😊

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