- Like all Romance languages, Portuguese evolved from Latin. The language developed on the western coast of the Iberian Peninsula in what is now Portugal and northwestern Spain.
- Portuguese varies in dialects by country and by region. Despite its relatively small size, however, Portugal boasts more dialects than the relatively few dialects of Brazil, one of the world's largest countries.
- Over 10 million native speakers reside in Portugal, though Portuguese speaking communities exist throughout southern Europe. Paris is home to the largest number of European Portuguese speaking residents outside of Portugal.
- Portuguese is the official language of Brazil, and the most widely spoken language in Latin America. Immigrants from Brazil to the U.S. and Canada have contributed to a growing Portuguese speaking community in North America, as well.
- Portuguese is the official language of many former colonies of Portugal, such as Angola and Mozambique in Africa, and Macao and East Timor in Asia.
