Portuguese & Brazilian Studies (Minor)

In our Portuguese minor, you will have the opportunity to learn the language through interactive, dynamic, and communicative classes enriched with cultural activities. These include the Portuguese Language Table, Trivia, SpotiFridays, Karaoke nights, Lusophone film screenings, and celebrations of cultural traditions from Brazil, Portugal, and Lusophone Africa, such as Carnaval and Festa de Todos os Santos (known in Brazil as Festa Junina). Additionally, a diverse selection of upper-level courses allows you to explore not only Brazil but also Portugal and Lusophone Africa. Alongside courses on Brazilian Pop Culture (sports, soap operas, music, and cinema), Brazil Beyond Stereotypes (soccer, the Amazon, Rio, and Carnaval as key topics to understand Brazilian society), Brazil: Giant of the South (current issues in Brazilian society and politics), and Race and Social Inequality in Brazil, you can also take courses such as:

  • History, Art, and Cultural Identity in Contemporary Portugal (offered during the summer study abroad program)
  • Portuguese Pop Culture: Fado, Futebol, and Fátima (exploring major cultural elements of Portuguese identity)
  • Portuguese and Brazilian Literature
  • Cinema of Portugal and Lusophone Africa
  • Women’s Voices in Luso-Afro-Brazilian Literature

These courses provide a comprehensive understanding of the Lusophone world, allowing you to engage with the historical, social, and artistic narratives that shape Portuguese-speaking communities across four continents. Through these experiences, you will connect language learning with history, politics, and culture, deepening your understanding of this globally significant linguistic and cultural sphere.

Required Courses: Three of the five courses must be in Portuguese language and/or Luso-Brazilian literature, film and culture taught in Portuguese.

  • ROPO 20201 (Intermediate I)
  • ROPO 20202 (Intermediate II)
  • ROPO 30000/40000-level course
  • Elective Courses: The fourth and fifth courses may be on Luso-Brazilian literature, film and culture (taught in English or Portuguese).
  • (2) ROPO 30000/40000-level courses

Elective courses may be on a Portuguese or Brazilian subject in another discipline (for example, Anthropology, History, Latin, American Studies, FTT, Political Science, Romance Languages and Literatures, Theology, etc.).

Note: Courses from foreign study programs or other universities may be substituted by permission, but at least three courses for the Portuguese minor must be taken in residence at Notre Dame. AP credit may not be applied toward the minor.