Overall objectives:

1 - To understand the prehistory of Portuguese through its linguistic ancestor, Vulgar Latin;
2 - To recognize the various Romance languages in their geographical distribution and internal variation;
3 - To situate the area of Gallaecia Magna, or the initial region of the Galician-Portuguese Romance language;
4 - To relate the territorial development of Portugal to the evolution of the Portuguese language;
5 - To analyse the philological and linguistic commentary of some of the oldest written documents in Portuguese;
6 - To understand and identify the various stages in the evolution of the Portuguese language up to the present day.

Syllabus:

1 - From Latin to Old Portuguese
1.1 - The Romance-speaking world and its current division
1.2 - The Romanization of the Iberian Peninsula
1.3 - The Formation of Galician-Portuguese
1.4 - The Mozarabs and the Arabic lexicon in Portuguese
2 - Archaic Portuguese
2.1 - Historical and linguistic analysis of the oldest texts in Portuguese
2.2 - The spelling of medieval texts
2.3 - The evolution of phonetics and the phonological system
3 - Portuguese in the Classical Period
3.1 - The first grammarians and lexicographers of the Portuguese language
3.2 - The Portuguese overseas expansion and its linguistic implications
3.3 - From Classical Portuguese to 18th-century Portuguese
4 - Contemporary Portuguese
4.1 - The dialects of European Portuguese
4.2 - Portuguese around the world: unity and diversity
4.3 - The orthographic agreements of the Portuguese language
4.4 - Some current trends in the evolution of the language

Literature/Sources:

K. Baldinger , 1958 , La formación de los dominios linguisticos en la Peninsula Ibérica , Gredos
A. P. Banza e M. F. Gonçalves , 2018 , Roteiro de História da Língua Portuguesa , UNESCO - UÉ
I. Castro , 1991 , Curso de História da Língua Portuguesa , Universidade Aberta
L. F. L. Cintra , 1990 , Estudos de Dialetologia Portuguesa , Sá da Costa Editora
J. Corominas e J. Pascual , 1980- , Diccionario critico etimológico e hispánico , Gredos
A. G. da Cunha , 1982 , Dicionário Etimológico Nova Fronteira da Língua Portuguesa , Nova Fronteira
J. P. Machado , 1952 , Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa , Livros Horizonte
C. de A. Maia , 1986 , História do Galego-Português. Estado linguístico da Galiza e do Noroeste de Portugal desde o século XIII ao século XVI , INIC
H. Meier , 1943 , A evolução do Português dentro do quadro das línguas ibero-românicas. Biblos ,
R. V. M. e Silva , 1989 , Estruturas trecentistas. Para uma gramática do Português arcaico , Imprensa Nacional-Casa da Moeda
R. V. M. e Silva , 1991 , O Português arcaico: fonologia , Contexto/Editora Universidade Federal da Bahia
C. Tagliavini , 1972 , Le origini delle lingue neolatine. Introduzione alla filologia romanza , Pàtron
F. Tarallo , 1990 , Tempos linguísticos: itinerário histórico da língua portuguesa , Editora Ática
P. Teyssier , 1980 , História da Língua Portuguesa (Tradução de Celso Cunha) , Martins Fontes

Assesssment methods and criteria:

Classification Type: Quantitativa (0-20)

Evaluation Methodology:
Regarding the pedagogical model, classes are theoretical-practical (48TP). Methodologically, they begin with a more expository component, then combine the presentation of theoretical content with practical and independent student work. In class, the methodology integrates both theoretical and practical components, fostering a collaborative and participatory teaching-learning process. The aim is to implement a dynamic methodology centred on task-based learning, designed to explore the concepts outlined in the syllabus. Students are guided to understand the origin and evolution of Portuguese from Vulgar Latin to the present day through the exploration of historical documents and materials from historical grammars and orthographies of the Portuguese language. In doing so, they can observe and understand the development of Portuguese grammar and orthography over the centuries, as well as its current geographical variation in Portugal and across the world. This course unit also encourages students to carry out research and reflection on the thematic content of the syllabus, by analysing and describing data from both non-literary and literary texts of the past, historical grammars, and other linguistic resources. The evaluation is divided into two components, including the written and oral aspects. Thus, the evaluation is done with an individual written work (50%) and an oral presentation (50%).