Portuguese American Journal

Portuguese American Journal

Featured Stories
100 years ago | Devastating earthquake shook Faial Island Sports | Fernando Pimenta world canoeing champion Community | 20th Anniversary of Portas da Cidade Celebration Community | The Holy Ghost Festival of New England returns Community | Judge Luis Matos nominated to Rhode Island Supreme Court
 

100 years ago | Devastating earthquake shook Faial Island – Azores

One hundred years ago today, on the morning of August 31, 1926, the island of Faial was violently shaken by one of the most destructive earthquakes in the modern history of the Azores.  A century later, the Museu da Horta is commemorating the disaster with historical photographs, educational activities and an earthquake-preparedness exercise involving about […]

Sports | Fernando Pimenta world canoeing champion – Poznan, Poland

Portuguese canoeing star Fernando Pimenta was crowned world champion in the K1 1000 meters, winning a dramatic final at the Canoe Sprint World Championships in Poznan, Poland, on August 29, 2026.  The achievement adds another historic chapter to the career of the athlete from Ponte de Lima, widely regarded as Portugal’s greatest canoeist. Pimenta currently […]

Community | 20th Anniversary of Portas da Cidade Celebration – Fall River, MA

Mayor Paul Coogan, in conjunction with the Portas da Cidade Advisory Committee and the Prince Henry Society, will host a special ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Portas da Cidade (City Gates), one of Fall River’s most recognizable symbols of its Azorean heritage.  The celebration will take place Monday, August 31, at 10:30 am […]

Community | The Holy Ghost Festival of New England returns – Fall River, MA

The Holy Ghost Festival of New England will be held in Kennedy Park in Fall River, Massachusetts, from August 26–30. Former Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is expected to visit Fall River as a guest of honor for the 40th-anniversary festival celebration, according to reports. The President of the Regional Government of the Azores, […]

Community | Judge Luis Matos nominated to Rhode Island Supreme Court – Providence, RI

Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee has nominated Superior Court Associate Justice Luis M. Matos, a Portuguese-born jurist with extensive state and federal experience, to serve on the Rhode Island Supreme Court.  Governor McKee said his responsibility was to select someone with “unquestionable qualifications, an impeccable reputation and a strong record in strong and fair judging.” […]

Education: Portuguese language qualifies for college placement and credit – NEWL

06 March 2017

Effective April 2017, college bound secondary education students in the United States will be able to earn college placement and college credits for Portuguese as a foreign language’. To qualify, students will take the National Examinations in World Languages (NEWL), a test developed by the American Councils for International Education and recognized by the Advanced […]

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

Book: ‘The Lusophone World’ by Sarah Ashby – Editor’s Note

01 March 2017

Portugal’s European Union honeymoon has officially ended. It was the victim of a Europe-wide political and financial crisis and an unstable EU identity increasingly splintered along regional and economic fractures. What does this mean for the former ‘‘good student’’ of European democracy? The answer may lie in renewed Portuguese efforts to deepen and strengthen ties […]

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Posted in Angola, Arts&Culture, Books, Brazil, Cape Verde, East Timor, Featured, Guiné-Bissau, Heritage, Mozambique, Politics, Portugal, São Tomé and Prince, World

Scholarships: Portugal Summer Study Program – UMass, Lowell

01 March 2017

The Saab-Pedroso Center for Portuguese Culture and Research, at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, has announced a 2017 summer abroad program in Lisbon, Portugal. Financial aid and/or scholarships are available for eligible students. Students can choose Option 1 (4 week program) departing the US on June 3 and returning June 30, 2017. Students who choose […]

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Posted in Community, Education, Featured, Heritage, Organizations, People, Portugal, Scholarships, Travel, World

Book: ‘Pereira Maintains’ by Antonio Tabucchi – Editor’s Note

28 February 2017

Dr. Pereira is an aging, lonely, overweight journalist who has failed to notice the menacing cloud of fascism over Salazarist Lisbon. One day he meets Montiero Rossi, an aspiring young writer whose anti-fascist fervor is as strong as Pereira’s apolitical languor. Eventually, breaking out of the shell of his own inhibitions, Pereira reluctantly rises to […]

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Posted in Arts&Culture, Books, Featured, Politics, Portugal

Europe: Portuguese rank second with more emigrants leaving the country – Portugal

25 February 2017

Portugal ranks second after Malta among the European countries losing more population to emigration, the Lisbon-based Emigration Observatory [Observatório da Emigração] reported. According to the report, an average of 110,000 Portuguese/year have left the country between 2013 and 2015. It is estimated that currently 2.3 million (22%) Portuguese born nationals live abroad, a figure only […]

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

Joe Perry: Aerosmith lead guitarist speaks of his Portuguese heritage – Exclusive

24 February 2017

By Susan L. Hornik (*) Recently, Aerosmith’s lead guitarist Joe Perry was bestowed with the 2017 ‘Les Paul Award’ at the NAMM TEC Awards convention, one of the top music product trade shows in the world. Of Portuguese and Italian descent, Joe Perry is the consummate guitarist, singer, songwriter and lyricist. It is no wonder […]

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Posted in Arts&Culture, Community, Entertainment, Featured, Heritage, Madeira, Music, People, Portugal, World