Barbara Hlibowicka-Węglarz
Romanica Cracoviensia, Special Issue (2024), Volume 24 (2024), pp. 209-218
https://doi.org/10.4467/20843917RC.24.020.20353In Portuguese America, the general languages were the languages of indigenous origin used by the administration and the Church as an instrument of interethnic communication. These languages were spoken by everyone who was part of the colonial system. In the Brazilian territory, two general languageswere formed in very different linguistic contexts: the Língua Geral Paulista (LGP) and the Língua Geral Amazónica (LGA). Established in the 16th century, LGP emerged in the São Vicente region and was widely spread by the bandeirantes of São Paulo to other states in the 17th and 18th centuries. After a period of great expansion, and because of the political and social changes that took place in colonial society, this general language lost its hegemony in the 19th century and ceased to be spoken at the beginning of the 20th century. The article aims to analyse the socio-historical conditions that led to the formation, expansion, weakening and disappearance of the General Language of São Paulo.
Barbara Hlibowicka-Węglarz
Romanica Cracoviensia, Volume 11, Issue 1, Volume 11 (2011), pp. 177-185
https://doi.org/10.4467/20843917RC.11.020.0088The aim of this article is to identify the origin of the Portuguese-based Creole languages which developed in the Gulf of Guinea in the 16th century. In order to achieve this aim, we shall analyze the socio-historical as well as lingual conditions in which the creolization process occurred.
The archipelago Saints Thomas and Prince was discovered by the Portuguese at the end of the 15th century and was populated by the black slaves originating from the African coasts who spoke different languages mainly representing the groups Kwa and Bantu. Under such favourable conditions, the creolization process quickly took place. As a result the Proto-Creole language developed, out of which slightly later four other Creole languages developed.