that the Brazil it's a nation made up of people from all over the world, everyone already knows, but do you realize how this influences everyday life? A clear mark of how a people was constituted is the language, which is much more than a set of words. Language is the junction of meanings, stories and, many times, a sign of resistance.
A Portuguese language is no different and has many cultural and historical traits, one of them being the influence african. many dyalects Africans were introduced into the country com the forced arrival of people native to the African continent to work in the slave regime.
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As a tactic of repression, the planters prohibited conversation in African dialects, and thus much culture was lost over time. However, it is possible to find words of African origin used until today. This perpetuation of vocabulary has become an act of resistance, preventing the African presence from being silenced.
words of African origin
1 — Abada
The word abbot comes from the Yoruba language and refers to the white tunics or gowns used in religious ceremonies. However, currently, it is the term used for the T-shirt purchased during the Carnival.
2 — Axe
According to Yoruba, asé, the term means power or vital energy present in all living beings and in the universe.
3 — Cachaça
Sugar cane brandy, made through fermentation and distillation. The word originated in the Quicongo language, from the Bantu group, currently represented in Congo, Angola and Mozambique.
Harvesting sugar cane was one of the most common economic activities in Brazilian slavery.
4 — Pipe
Instrument used to smoke, usually tobacco. The word derives from the term kixima, from Kimbundu, one of the most widely spoken Bantu languages in Angola.
5 — youngest
from Kimbundu kazuli, means the last or the youngest in the family.
6 — Cafuné
Cafuné derives from Kimbundu and means caress or scratch someone's head.
7 — Candomblé
O candomblé It is the most practiced religion of African origin in Brazil and originated from the term Kimbundu. candombe, that means dance with atabaques, with the Yoruba term ile or ilê, that means House. Soon, the term of the meaning was born dance house with atabaques.
8 — Cuica
The drum-like instrument is called in Angola pwita. Around 1930, it began to be used in the batteries of the schools of samba.
9 — Oil palm
The name of palm oil comes from Kimbundu, ndende, and became Palm oil.
Palm oil is produced from the fruit of the oil palm, a palm tree found in West Africa. The ingredient is widely used in Afro-Brazilian cuisine.
10 — Dengo
The word dengo has a bantu origin and means something like infant whining, morning or sweetness.
11 — Cornmeal
Cornmeal was the basis of the diet of Brazilian enslaved people, having its origin in the Banta language Kimbundu.
12 — Macumba
Macumba, originally quimb makumba, referred to the musical instrument played in religious ceremonies with African roots. However, it became the name of a religion practiced in the first half of the 20th century, in Rio de Janeiro.
13 — Kid
from Kimbundu boy, means little son or boy and it was a way of calling the children. Over time, it gained a pejorative meaning and, before the abolition of slavery, it was considered a great offense to call white children brats.
14 — Muvuca
mvuka, of banta origin, means noisy crowd of people as a form of leisure or celebration.
15 — Greengrocer
Quitanda is a term from Kimbundu, derived from kitanda, and it is a small trade where fresh products are sold, such as fruits, vegetables, eggs, etc.
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