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In:The Portuguese Language Continuum in Africa and Brazil
Edited by Laura Álvarez López, Perpétua Gonçalves and Juanito Ornelas de Avelar
[Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 20] 2018
► pp. 169–184

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Chapter 7
From creoles to Portuguese

Language shift in São Tomé and Príncipe

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Published online: 22 November 2018
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https://doi.org/10.1075/ihll.20.08hag
Abstract
The small island state of São Tomé and Príncipe, located in the Gulf of Guinea in West-Africa, is a linguistically unparalleled case in Africa in the sense that the former colonial language, Portuguese, has become the dominant native language of its population over time, replacing the historically dominant autochthonous creole languages. The aim of this chapter is to analyze the historical and sociolinguistic aspects that led to widespread shift to and nativization of Portuguese in this country.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The first colonization: Genesis of the Gulf of Guinea creoles
  • 3.The second colonization: The rise of Portuguese
  • 4.Final remarks
  • Acknowledgement
  • Notes
  • References
References (40)
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This list is based on CrossRef data as of 12 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

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