Portuguese American Journal

Portuguese American Journal

Featured Stories
Community | Nazaré and Half Moon Bay to establish sister-city partnership Community: Remembering the Portuguese victims of September 9/11 Community | Portuguese citizen detained by ICE has been deported 1976-2026 | Azoreans mark 50 years of Autonomy with solemn ceremony Canada | Brampton to inaugurate replica of Portas da Cidade
 

Community | Nazaré and Half Moon Bay to establish sister-city partnership – California

The Municipality of Nazaré, Portugal, and the City of Half Moon Bay, California, are moving forward with a new sister-city partnership designed to strengthen ties between two coastal communities united by the sea, maritime traditions, tourism, Portuguese heritage and an international reputation for big-wave surfing. On July 21, 2026, the Half Moon Bay City Council […]

Community: Remembering the Portuguese victims of September 9/11 – New York, NY

As the United States marks the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the Portuguese-American community joins the nation in remembering the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives, including five Portuguese citizens and four Portuguese descendants known to have been killed at the World Trade Center in New York City. The nine […]

Community | Portuguese citizen detained by ICE has been deported – Lisbon, Portugal

Hugo Freitas de Sousa, 39, a native of Terceira Island in the Azores, has returned to Lisbon, Portugal, after spending approximately six weeks in U.S. immigration detention in Tacoma, Washington state.  Sousa, who had lived in the United States for about 35 years, emigrated with his parents as a child and held permanent-resident status through […]

1976-2026 | Azoreans mark 50 years of Autonomy with solemn ceremony – Horta, Faial

The Autonomous Region of the Azores marked a historic milestone with a Solemn Session on Friday, September 4, at the inaugural session of the Regional Assembly in Horta, Faial, honoring the 50th anniversary of the establishment of self-government. The Regional Assembly’s first solemn session took place exactly 50 years ago in Horta and was presided […]

Canada | Brampton to inaugurate replica of Portas da Cidade – Toronto, Ontario

One of the most recognizable symbols of the Azores, Portas da Cidade (City Gates) of Ponta Delgada, will soon have a new home in Brampton, in Canada’s Greater Toronto Area. The inauguration of a full-scale replica of the historic monument is scheduled for September 12, 2026, at Azores Park, 100 Malta Avenue.  The monument will […]

Travel: TAP Air Portugal badly hit struggles to survive – Portugal

19 May 2020

Portugal’s Prime Minister, António Costa, and the Minister of Economy, Pedro Siza Vieira, have admitted the possibility of nationalizing TAP Air Portugal, the national flag carrier, badly hit by the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. “We cannot exclude the need to nationalize TAP or other companies that are absolutely essential for the country. We cannot […]

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Posted in Azores, Featured, Heritage, Madeira, Organizations, People, Portugal, Travel, World

May 5th: World Portuguese Language Day celebrated by many countries – Portugal

05 May 2020

The Lusophone world is celebrating May 5th as the international day of the Portuguese language and culture.  Previously celebrated as “Portuguese Language Day” for the first time May 5th is celebrated as the “World Portuguese Language Day” by UNESCO. The ceremony, which took place in Paris, France, was acknowledged in about five dozen countries. Portugal […]

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Posted in Community, Featured, Heritage, Organizations, People, Portugal, World

COVID’19: Cautiously lifting lockdowns – Portugal

03 May 2020

By Len Port It’s looking like a positive turning point for Portugal in the coronavirus trauma. From this Monday, the Portuguese authorities will be closely monitoring the lifting of some emergency lockdowns with a view to extending them if all goes well.  The government’s cautious plan for an economic recovery is starting with small shops […]

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Posted in Azores, Featured, Heritage, Madeira, Organizations, People, Portugal

Phone call: President Trump congratulates President Rebelo de Sousa – Portugal

01 May 2020

The President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, received a phone call this Friday, from President Donald Trump, praising the Portuguese government performance in battling the COVID19 epidemic, the office of the Portuguese President reported. During the call, President Trump congratulated Portugal and offered “all the useful help necessary and considered useful.” Bilateral issues of […]

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Posted in Community, Featured, Organizations, People, Portugal, World

Book: ‘The Christian Century in Japan 1549-1650’ by Charles R. Boxer – Editor’s Note

25 April 2020

The first known appearance of organized Christianity in Japan was the arrival of the Portuguese Catholics in 1549. Spanish missionary Francis Xavier arrived in Japan with three Japanese Catholic converts intending to start a church in Japan. The local Japanese people initially assumed that the foreigners were from India and that Christianity was a new […]

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Posted in Arts&Culture, Books, Featured, Heritage, People, Portugal, World

Today in History: “Dia da Liberdade” celebrated under duress – Portugal

25 April 2020

Since 1974 the Portuguese nation has been celebrating “Dia da Liberdade” [Freedom Day], with a national holiday on 25th April Revolution, to mark the bloodless military coup which brought democracy and civil liberties to modern Portugal. This year, due to the COVID19 epidemic, the celebrations have been simplified to a shorter non-public ceremony in the […]

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Posted in Azores, Featured, Heritage, Madeira, Organizations, People, Portugal, World