Learning Notes

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:

  • 🗺 Countries in Portuguese (so you can say where you’re from!)
  • 🤓 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 CanadáCanada
  • o ChileChile
  • EgitoEgypt
  • os Emirados Árabes UnidosUnited Arab Emirates
  • o EquadorEcuador
  • os Estados Unidosthe United States
  • o GanaGhana
  • o IraqueIraq
  • o IrãoIran – this is o Irã in Brazil
  • o JapãoJapan
  • o LuxemburgoLuxembourg
  • o MéxicoMexico
  • o NepalNepal
  • o PaquistãoPakistan
  • os Países Baixosthe Netherlands *See below for alternative
  • o QuéniaKenya
  • o Reino Unidothe United Kingdom
  • o Sri LankaSri Lanka
  • o UruguaiUruguay
  • o VietnameVietnam – this is o Vietnã in Brazil
  • o ZimbábueZimbabwe

♀ “Feminine” Countries

  • a África do SulSouth Africa
  • a ÁustriaAustria
  • a AlemanhaGermany
  • a ArgentinaArgentina
  • a AustráliaAustralia
  • a BulgáriaBulgaria
  • a BélgicaBelgium
  • a ChinaChina
  • a ColômbiaColombia
  • a DinamarcaDenmark
  • a EscóciaScotland
  • as Filipinasthe Philippines
  • a FinlândiaFinland
  • a GréciaGreece
  • a HolandaHolland, the Netherlands *Often used to refer to the Netherlands as a whole
  • a HungriaHungary
  • a ÍndiaIndia
  • a IndonésiaIndonesia
  • a IrlandaIreland
  • a ItáliaItaly
  • a NigériaNigeria
  • a NoruegaNorway
  • a Nova ZelândiaNew Zealand
  • a PolóniaPoland
  • a República Checa ou ChéquiaThe Czech Republic or Czechia
  • a RoméniaRomania
  • a RússiaRussia
  • a SuéciaSweden
  • a SuíçaSwitzerland
  • a TailândiaThailand
  • a TurquiaTurkey
  • a UcrâniaUkraine
  • a VenezuelaVenezuela

⚪️ “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 -á, e, é, u, i, ai, ã, im, ão – 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 Canadáfrom Canada
  • da Alemanhafrom Germany
  • dos Estados Unidosfrom the United States

🤯 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 portuguêsI am Portuguese(masc.) Sou portuguesaI am Portuguese(fem.) Falo portuguêsI 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 inglêsI speak English
  • Sou do CanadáI am from Canada Sou canadianoI am Canadian(masc.) Sou canadianaI am Canadian(fem.) Falo inglês e francêsI speak English and French
  • Sou do Reino UnidoI am from the United Kingdom Sou inglêsI'm English(masc.) Sou inglesaI'm English(fem.) Sou britânicoI'm British(masc.) Sou britânicaI'm British(fem.)
  • Sou do JapãoI am from Japan Sou japonêsI am Japanese(masc.) Sou japonesaI am Japanese(fem.) Falo japonêsI speak Japanese
  • Sou da EscóciaI’m from Scotland Sou escocêsI’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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