Why learn Portuguese when the Portuguese can speak English?

In recent years, Portugal has become an increasingly popular destination for travelers and migrants from non-Portuguese-speaking countries. By and large, the people of Portugal are welcoming of foreigners. However, their acceptance of newcomers can hit a barrier, specifically a language barrier, most notably outside the centers of international attention such as Lisbon or the Algarve.
I have been teaching Portuguese as a Second Language to adult learners for about three years. I have helped students from beginner to advanced prepare for their language exams. I have seen the ups and downs students experience adjusting to a new culture, to a new society, and, of course, to new ways of communication.
A lot of people online argue that you don’t really need to speak Portuguese to get by in Portugal since most locals speak English. That might be true to a degree, especially for digital nomads or in international business settings. Still, as many learners tell me, “It ends up feeling like I am surviving in the country instead of living in it.”
You will also need a level of proficiency to interact with state authorities. If your interlocutor deems your language skills insufficient, they will require the presence of a translator. If you are a non-EU migrant, an A2 certificate is a prerequisite for citizenship after 5 years of residency. Contracts and other documents are usually strictly in Portuguese and the burden of hiring a bilingual lawyer or an official translator is on you. If you plan on going to university, you will need a B1 level or above, depending on your field.
As in any other country, your appreciation for the language, the people, and the culture will deepen as your knowledge of Portuguese grows. The level you need to reach may vary depending on where you live. In the city, there will be other foreigners and you can build your inner circle around them. In the countryside, you will have to communicate effectively with native speakers to gain admittance into the tight-knit community. Learners say this is challenging but also immensely rewarding.
Portuguese is a romance language, a descendant of Latin. It is most similar to Spanish and Italian. It also shares some of its grammar and vocabulary with French and Romanian. If you speak a romance language, you have a built-in advantage. Otherwise, the transition will be harder, but you still can become fluent in Portuguese!
The language can seem like a dense thicket of grammatical rules, exceptions to those rules, verb tenses, and idiomatic expressions. As a romance language, each verb comes with a big number of conjugations, and that alone can be overwhelming at first. My advice: start with the simple present and the simple past, and learn to recognize patterns of use in context.
Students often complain about Portuguese sounding different from its written form. I tell them the Portuguese tend to speak in shortcuts. Unlike Brazilian Portuguese, with its rhythm and melodic intonation, European Portuguese can seem clipped and monotonic. Portuguese speech is more connected. Individual words are harder to understand.
When you start learning Portuguese, you may find reading much easier. You might recognize Latin cognates. You can analyze each word and look up its meaning. Listening is more unforgiving. You have to rely mostly on the gist of it. Learners find this skill hard to train and often feel discouraged when they do not understand everything.
Now, say you have been learning Portuguese for a while. You are getting the hang of it! You feel confident enough to go beyond “Olá! Bom dia, tudo bem?” You start chatting with your local store clerk. But why are they still replying in English? This can be due to many different factors. One is basic hospitality: service workers often feel they should accommodate you and your circumstances. Therefore, to spare you from further “struggles,” you are given the opportunity to speak English. Also, you are an English speaker and they want to learn from you. Most Portuguese do not get to practice their English unless they engage with foreigners. Yet they may still be struggling to understand you – my personal assumption is many Portuguese are not exposed to different accents and have a hard time processing differences in diction. Moreover, if you are trying to practice your Portuguese in a busy environment, a clerk may simply want to speed things along so they can serve more people. Please do not consider this to be rude: it is just good customer service.
Do not give up! There will be obstacles, but that does not mean that you are not making progress. Perseverance is key to attaining conversational Portuguese. Do not let negative reactions demoralize you. Most Portuguese are appreciative of your efforts and will most definitely agree that you are, truly, trying your very best. ■ Joana Santos Portuguese teacher