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115-867: Portuguese pavement , known in Portuguese as calçada portuguesa or simply calçada (or pedra portuguesa in Brazil), is a traditional-style pavement used for many pedestrian areas in Portugal . It consists of small pieces of stone arranged in a pattern or image, like a mosaic . It can also be found in Olivença (a disputed territory administered by Spain) and throughout former Portuguese colonies , especially in Brazil . Portuguese workers are also hired for their skill in creating these pavements in places such as Gibraltar . Being usually used in sidewalks , it

230-589: A "code of practice" for making train and stations accessible: "Accessible Train and Station Design for Disabled People: A Code of Practice". This code of practice was first published in 2002 with the objective of compliance to Section 71B of the Railways Act 1993, and revised after a public consultation period in 2008. Some transport companies have since improved the accessibility of their services, such as incorporating low-floor buses into their stock as standard. In August 2021, South Western Railway announced

345-726: A cement. Portuguese language Portuguese ( endonym : português or língua portuguesa ) is a Western Romance language of the Indo-European language family originating from the Iberian Peninsula of Europe . It is the official language of Angola , Brazil , Cape Verde , Guinea-Bissau , Mozambique , Portugal and São Tomé and Príncipe , and has co-official language status in East Timor , Equatorial Guinea and Macau . Portuguese-speaking people or nations are known as Lusophone ( lusófono ). As

460-551: A cheaper, more regular type of concrete pavement since 2007, other cities such as Rio de Janeiro still have nearly ubiquitous Portuguese pavement, particularly in more affluent areas. It can also be found around the Asunción Super Centro building in Asunción , Paraguay . Craftsmen lay a bedding of gravel upon a well-compacted trench of argillaceous materials, which accommodates the tessera stones, acting as

575-644: A conceptual meaning with normal pedestrian access from a standard kerb (curb) height. However, the accessibility of a low-floor vehicle can also be utilised from slightly raising portions of kerb at bus stops , or through use of level boarding bus rapid transit stations or tram stops. The combination of access from a kerb was the technological development of the 1990s, as step-free interior layouts for buses had existed in some cases for decades, with entrance steps being introduced as chassis designs and overall height regulations changed. Low-floor buses may also be designed with special height adjustment controls that permit

690-487: A condition worsened by natural wear and tear as well as by rainy conditions, the latter of which also allows for the formation of puddles in more concave, worn-out sections. Other disadvantages include the propensity for weeds and moss to form in its cracks. The loosening of stones is also a relevant issue, making sidewalks covered by this type of pavement need constant maintenance and repair in order to avoid pedestrians from tripping. These qualities have often made transport for

805-490: A disability requires an adapted car for work use, the employee does not have to pay for a " reasonable adjustment " in the United Kingdom; if the employer is unable to pay the cost, assistance is offered by government programs. A significant development in transportation, and public transport in particular, to achieve accessibility, is the move to "low-floor" vehicles. In a low-floor vehicle, access to part or all of

920-524: A form of Romance called Mozarabic which introduced a few hundred words from Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Berber. Like other Neo-Latin and European languages, Portuguese has adopted a significant number of loanwords from Greek , mainly in technical and scientific terminology. These borrowings occurred via Latin, and later during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Portuguese evolved from

1035-408: A home currently has a disability. However, there are some initiatives to change typical residential practices so that new homes incorporate basic access features such as zero-step entries and door widths adequate for wheelchairs to pass through. Occupational Therapists are a professional group skilled in the assessment and making of recommendations to improve access to homes. They are involved in both

1150-407: A large 1999 survey found that "of the 'top 100 multinational companies' in the country [...] the employment rate of persons with disabilities in the private sector was a mere 0.28%, 0.05% in multinational companies and only 0.58% in the top 100 IT companies in the country". India, like much of the world, has large sections of the economy that are without strong regulation or social protections, such as

1265-625: A large part of the diaspora is a part of the already-counted population of the Portuguese-speaking countries and territories, such as the high number of Brazilian and PALOP emigrant citizens in Portugal or the high number of Portuguese emigrant citizens in the PALOP and Brazil. The Portuguese language therefore serves more than 250 million people daily, who have direct or indirect legal, juridical and social contact with it, varying from

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1380-632: A native language by vast majorities due to their Portuguese colonial past or as a lingua franca in bordering and multilingual regions, such as on the Brazilian borders of Uruguay and Paraguay and in regions of Angola and Namibia. In many other countries, Portuguese is spoken by majorities as a second language. There remain communities of thousands of Portuguese (or Creole ) first language speakers in Goa , Sri Lanka , Kuala Lumpur , Daman and Diu , and other areas due to Portuguese colonization . In East Timor,

1495-440: A range of tasks, and may be suitable for different kinds of disability. The following impairments are some of the disabilities that affect communications and technology access, as well as many other life activities: Each kind of disability requires a different kind of accommodation, and this may require analysis by a medical specialist, an educational specialist or a job analysis when the impairment requires accommodation. One of

1610-411: A single general solution that can accommodate people with disabilities as well as the rest of the population. By contrast, accessible design is focused on ensuring that there are no barriers to accessibility for all people, including those with disabilities. The disability rights movement advocates equal access to social, political, and economic life which includes not only physical access but access to

1725-541: A standard color code that enables colorblind individuals to understand the correct signal. Adaptive technology is the modification, or adaptation, of existing devices, methods, or the creation of new uses for existing devices, to enable a person to complete a task. Examples include the use of remote controls, and the autocomplete (word completion) feature in computer word processing programs, which both help individuals with mobility impairments to complete tasks. Adaptations to wheelchair tires are another example; widening

1840-594: A state, provincial or local level. In Ontario, Canada , the Ontarians with Disabilities Act of 2001 is meant to "improve the identification, removal and prevention of barriers faced by persons with disabilities". The European Union (EU), which has signed the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, also has adopted a European Disability Strategy for 2010–20. The Strategy includes

1955-409: A stationary bus to temporarily lower itself to ground level, permitting wheelchair access. This is referred to as a kneeling bus . At rapid transit systems, vehicles generally have floors in the same height as the platforms but the stations are often underground or elevated, so accessibility there is not a question of providing low-floor vehicles, but providing a step-free access from street level to

2070-517: A toilet at entrance level and sufficiently wide doorways, to deem them accessible. This was an improvement from 5% in 2005. More than 400,000 wheelchair users in England were living in homes which are neither adapted nor accessible. Under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities , states parties are bound to assure accessible elections , voting , and voting procedures. In 2018,

2185-522: A wide range of issues, from skills training, to occupational therapy , finding employment, and retaining employment. Employment rates for workers with disabilities are lower than for the general workforce. Workers in Western countries fare relatively well, having access to more services and training as well as legal protections against employment discrimination. Despite this, in the United States

2300-437: A wizard') (Angola). From South America came batata (' potato '), from Taino ; ananás and abacaxi , from Tupi–Guarani naná and Tupi ibá cati , respectively (two species of pineapple ), and pipoca (' popcorn ') from Tupi and tucano (' toucan ') from Guarani tucan . Finally, it has received a steady influx of loanwords from other European languages, especially French and English . These are by far

2415-647: Is also termed "the language of Camões", after Luís Vaz de Camões , one of the greatest literary figures in the Portuguese language and author of the Portuguese epic poem The Lusiads . In March 2006, the Museum of the Portuguese Language , an interactive museum about the Portuguese language, was founded in São Paulo , Brazil, the city with the greatest number of Portuguese language speakers in

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2530-729: Is also the origin of the luso- prefix, seen in terms like " Lusophone ". Between AD 409 and AD 711, as the Roman Empire collapsed in Western Europe , the Iberian Peninsula was conquered by Germanic peoples of the Migration Period . The occupiers, mainly Suebi , Visigoths and Buri who originally spoke Germanic languages , quickly adopted late Roman culture and the Vulgar Latin dialects of

2645-730: Is based on the Portuguese spoken in the area including and surrounding the cities of Coimbra and Lisbon , in central Portugal. Standard European Portuguese is also the preferred standard by the Portuguese-speaking African countries. As such, and despite the fact that its speakers are dispersed around the world, Portuguese has only two dialects used for learning: the European and the Brazilian. Some aspects and sounds found in many dialects of Brazil are exclusive to South America, and cannot be found in Europe. The same occur with

2760-412: Is considerably intelligible for lusophones, owing to their genealogical proximity and shared genealogical history as West Iberian ( Ibero-Romance languages ), historical contact between speakers and mutual influence, shared areal features as well as modern lexical, structural, and grammatical similarity (89%) between them. Portuñol /Portunhol, a form of code-switching , has a more lively use and

2875-508: Is either mandatory, or taught, in the schools of those South American countries. Although early in the 21st century, after Macau was returned to China and immigration of Brazilians of Japanese descent to Japan slowed down, the use of Portuguese was in decline in Asia , it is once again becoming a language of opportunity there, mostly because of increased diplomatic and financial ties with economically powerful Portuguese-speaking countries in

2990-420: Is important to have effective mechanisms to ensure that urban spaces are designed to be inclusive of pedestrians with disabilities. These can include early consultation with disabled persons or their representative organisations, and appropriate regulation of city planning. Most existing and new housing, even in the wealthiest nations, lack basic accessibility features unless the designated, immediate occupant of

3105-512: Is in town squares and atriums that this art finds its deepest expression. One of the most distinctive uses of this paving technique is the image of Saint-Queen Elizabeth of Portugal (Santa Rainha Isabel), in Coimbra , designed with black and white stones of basalt and limestone . Paving as a craft is believed to have originated in Mesopotamia , where rocky materials were used in

3220-580: Is more readily mentioned in popular culture in South America. Said code-switching is not to be confused with the Portuñol spoken on the borders of Brazil with Uruguay ( dialeto do pampa ) and Paraguay ( dialeto dos brasiguaios ), and of Portugal with Spain ( barranquenho ), that are Portuguese dialects spoken natively by thousands of people, which have been heavily influenced by Spanish. Accessibility Accessibility can be viewed as

3335-434: Is the desire for many senior citizens to 'age in place', living as independently as possible for as long as possible. Accessibility modifications that allow ageing in place are becoming more common. Housing may even be designed to incorporate accessibility modifications that can be made throughout the life cycle of the residents. The English Housing Survey for 2018/19 found only 9% of homes in England have key features, such as

3450-463: Is the extent to which a product (such as a device, service, or environment) can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a specified context of use. Accessibility is also strongly related to universal design , the process of creating products that are usable by the widest possible range of people, operating within the widest possible range of situations. Universal design typically provides

3565-721: Is understood by all. Almost 50% of the East Timorese are fluent in Portuguese. No data is available for Cape Verde, but almost all the population is bilingual, and the monolingual population speaks the Portuguese-based Cape Verdean Creole . Portuguese is mentioned in the Constitution of South Africa as one of the languages spoken by communities within the country for which the Pan South African Language Board

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3680-636: Is usually listed as the fifth-most spoken native language , the third-most spoken European language in the world in terms of native speakers and the second-most spoken Romance language in the world, surpassed only by Spanish . Being the most widely spoken language in South America and the most-spoken language in the Southern Hemisphere , it is also the second-most spoken language, after Spanish, in Latin America , one of

3795-708: The Economic Community of West African States , the Southern African Development Community and the European Union . According to The World Factbook ' s country population estimates for 2018, the population of each of the ten jurisdictions is as follows (by descending order): The combined population of the entire Lusophone area was estimated at 300 million in January 2022. This number does not include

3910-806: The Red Cross (alongside English, German, Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian), Amnesty International (alongside 32 other languages of which English is the most used, followed by Spanish, French, German, and Italian), and Médecins sans Frontières (used alongside English, Spanish, French and Arabic), in addition to being the official legal language in the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights , also in Community of Portuguese Language Countries , an international organization formed essentially by lusophone countries . Modern Standard European Portuguese ( português padrão or português continental )

4025-569: The Republic of the Congo , Senegal , Namibia , Eswatini , South Africa , Ivory Coast , and Mauritius . In 2017, a project was launched to introduce Portuguese as a school subject in Zimbabwe . Also, according to Portugal's Minister of Foreign Affairs, the language will be part of the school curriculum of a total of 32 countries by 2020. In such countries, Portuguese is spoken either as

4140-586: The West Iberian branch of the Romance languages , and it has special ties with the following members of this group: Portuguese and other Romance languages (namely French and Italian ) share considerable similarities in both vocabulary and grammar. Portuguese speakers will usually need some formal study before attaining strong comprehension in those Romance languages, and vice versa. However, Portuguese and Galician are fully mutually intelligible, and Spanish

4255-489: The calçada with contemporary design. Roberto Burle Marx applied it to many of his works and conserved it when redesigning Copacabana in the 1970s. Very little new paving of this type is done, and the entire profession is at risk. The long hours and low wages typical of calceteiros have reduced apprenticeships and thus new pavers. Furthermore, as the pavement is less safe (provides less traction when wet; loose stones can become tripping hazards), costs more (especially with

4370-423: The informal economy . Other factors have been cited as contributing to the high unemployment rate, such as public service regulations. Although employment for workers with disabilities is higher in the public sector due to hiring programs targeting persons with disabilities, regulations currently restrict types of work available to persons with disabilities: "Disability-specific employment reservations are limited to

4485-776: The pre-Roman inhabitants of Portugal , which included the Gallaeci , Lusitanians , Celtici and Cynetes . Most of these words derived from the Hispano-Celtic Gallaecian language of northwestern Iberia, and are very often shared with Galician since both languages have the same origin in the medieval language of Galician-Portuguese. A few of these words existed in Latin as loanwords from other Celtic sources, often Gaulish . Altogether these are over 3,000 words, verbs, toponymic names of towns, rivers, surnames, tools, lexicon linked to rural life and natural world. In

4600-431: The "ability to access" and benefit from some system or entity. The concept focuses on enabling access for people with disabilities, or enabling access through the use of assistive technology ; however, research and development in accessibility brings benefits to everyone. Therefore, an accessible society should eliminate digital divide or knowledge divide . Accessibility is not to be confused with usability , which

4715-510: The -s- form. Most of the lexicon of Portuguese is derived, directly or through other Romance languages, from Latin. Nevertheless, because of its original Lusitanian and Celtic Gallaecian heritage, and the later participation of Portugal in the Age of Discovery , it has a relevant number of words from the ancient Hispano-Celtic group and adopted loanwords from other languages around the world. A number of Portuguese words can still be traced to

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4830-583: The 10 most influential languages in the world. When the Romans arrived in the Iberian Peninsula in 216 BC, they brought with them the Latin language , from which all Romance languages are descended. The language was spread by Roman soldiers, settlers, and merchants, who built Roman cities mostly near the settlements of previous Celtic civilizations established long before the Roman arrivals. For that reason,

4945-601: The 10 most spoken languages in Africa , and an official language of the European Union , Mercosul , the Organization of American States , the Economic Community of West African States , the African Union , and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries , an international organization made up of all of the world's officially Lusophone nations. In 1997, a comprehensive academic study ranked Portuguese as one of

5060-465: The 15th century, the Portuguese maritime explorations led to the introduction of many loanwords from Asian languages. For instance, catana (' cutlass ') from Japanese katana , chá ('tea') from Chinese chá , and canja ('chicken-soup, piece of cake') from Malay . From the 16th to the 19th centuries, because of the role of Portugal as intermediary in the Atlantic slave trade , and

5175-479: The 2012 unemployment rate for workers with disabilities was 12.9%, while it was 7.3% for workers without disabilities. More than half of workers with disabilities (52%) earned less than $ 25,000 in the previous year, compared with just 38% of workers with no disabilities. This translates into an earnings gap where individuals with disabilities earn about 25 percent less of what workers without disabilities earn. Among occupations with 100,000 or more people, dishwashers had

5290-731: The 5th century, the Iberian Peninsula (the Roman Hispania ) was conquered by the Germanic , Suebi and Visigoths . As they adopted the Roman civilization and language, however, these people contributed with some 500 Germanic words to the lexicon. Many of these words are related to: The Germanic languages influence also exists in toponymic surnames and patronymic surnames borne by Visigoth sovereigns and their descendants, and it dwells on placenames such as Ermesinde , Esposende and Resende where sinde and sende are derived from

5405-440: The 9th and early 13th centuries, Portuguese acquired some 400 to 600 words from Arabic by influence of Moorish Iberia . They are often recognizable by the initial Arabic article a(l)- , and include common words such as aldeia ('village') from الضيعة aḍ-ḍayʿa , alface ('lettuce') from الخسة al-khassa , armazém ('warehouse') from المخزن al-makhzan , and azeite ('olive oil') from الزيت az-zayt . Starting in

5520-677: The 9th century until the 12th-century independence of the County of Portugal from the Kingdom of León , which had by then assumed reign over Galicia . In the first part of the Galician-Portuguese period (from the 12th to the 14th century), the language was increasingly used for documents and other written forms. For some time, it was the language of preference for lyric poetry in Christian Hispania , much as Occitan

5635-589: The Americas are independent languages. Portuguese, like Catalan , preserves the stressed vowels of Vulgar Latin which became diphthongs in most other Romance languages; cf. Port., Cat., Sard. pedra ; Fr. pierre , Sp. piedra , It. pietra , Ro. piatră , from Lat. petra ("stone"); or Port. fogo , Cat. foc , Sard. fogu ; Sp. fuego , It. fuoco , Fr. feu , Ro. foc , from Lat. focus ("fire"). Another characteristic of early Portuguese

5750-536: The Germanic sinths ('military expedition') and in the case of Resende, the prefix re comes from Germanic reths ('council'). Other examples of Portuguese names, surnames and town names of Germanic toponymic origin include Henrique, Henriques , Vermoim, Mandim, Calquim, Baguim, Gemunde, Guetim, Sermonde and many more, are quite common mainly in the old Suebi and later Visigothic dominated regions, covering today's Northern half of Portugal and Galicia . Between

5865-464: The Lusophone diaspora , estimated at 10 million people (including 4.5 million Portuguese, 3 million Brazilians, although it is hard to obtain official accurate numbers of diasporic Portuguese speakers because a significant portion of these citizens are naturalized citizens born outside of Lusophone territory or are children of immigrants, and may have only a basic command of the language. Additionally,

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5980-686: The Portuguese acronym CPLP) consists of the nine independent countries that have Portuguese as an official language : Angola , Brazil , Cape Verde , East Timor , Equatorial Guinea , Guinea-Bissau , Mozambique , Portugal and São Tomé and Príncipe . Equatorial Guinea made a formal application for full membership to the CPLP in June 2010, a status given only to states with Portuguese as an official language. Portuguese became its third official language (besides Spanish and French ) in 2011, and in July 2014,

6095-593: The Santomean, Mozambican, Bissau-Guinean, Angolan and Cape Verdean dialects, being exclusive to Africa. See Portuguese in Africa . Audio samples of some dialects and accents of Portuguese are available below. There are some differences between the areas but these are the best approximations possible. IPA transcriptions refer to the names in local pronunciation. Audio samples of some dialects and accents of Portuguese are available below. There are some differences between

6210-648: The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities issued an opinion that all polling stations should be fully accessible. At the European Court of Human Rights , there are currently two ongoing cases about the accessibility of polling places and voting procedures. They were brought against Slovenia by two voters and the Slovenian Disability Rights Association . As of January 2020,

6325-401: The United States, Japan, UK, and elsewhere, have decided that when it is needed to assure secret ballot, authorities should provide voters with assistive technology. The European Court of Human Rights, on the contrary, in case Toplak v. Slovenia ruled that due to high costs, the abandonment of the assistive equipment in elections did not violate human rights. Accessibility of employment covers

6440-444: The ability to access information and services by minimizing the barriers of distance and cost as well as the accessibility and usability of the interface. In many countries this has led to initiatives, laws and/or regulations that aim toward providing universal access to the internet and to phone systems at reasonable cost to citizens. A major advantage of advanced technology is its flexibility. Some technologies can be used at home, in

6555-564: The accessibility plans, these are often the distance or time to access services by different modes of transport including walking, cycling and public transport. Accessibility Planning was introduced as a result of the report "Making the Connections: Final Report on Transport and Social Exclusion". This report was the result of research carried out by the Social Exclusion Unit. The United Kingdom also has

6670-540: The adaptation of existing housing to improve accessibility, and in the design of future housing. The broad concept of Universal design is relevant to housing, as it is to all aspects of the built environment. Furthermore, a Visitability movement begun by grass roots disability advocates in the 1980s focuses specifically on changing construction practices in new housing. This movement, a network of interested people working in their locales, works on educating, passing laws, and spurring voluntary home access initiatives with

6785-588: The areas but these are the best approximations possible. IPA transcriptions refer to the names in local pronunciation. Você , a pronoun meaning "you", is used for educated, formal, and colloquial respectful speech in most Portuguese-speaking regions. In a few Brazilian states such as Rio Grande do Sul , Pará, among others, você is virtually absent from the spoken language. Riograndense and European Portuguese normally distinguishes formal from informal speech by verbal conjugation. Informal speech employs tu followed by second person verbs, formal language retains

6900-648: The biggest challenges for employers is in developing policies and practises to manage employees who develop disabilities during the course of employment. Even where these exist, they tend to focus on workplace injuries, overlooking job retention challenges faced by employees who acquire a non-occupation injury or illness. Protecting employability is a factor that can help close the unemployment gap for persons with disabilities. Providing mobility to people with disabilities includes changes for public facilities like gently sloping paths of travel for people using wheelchairs and difficulty walking up stairs, or audio announcements for

7015-414: The blind (either live or automated ); dedicated services like paratransit ; and adaptations to personal vehicles. Automobile accessibility also refers to ease of use by disabled people. Automobiles, whether a car or a van, can be adapted for a range of physical disabilities. Foot pedals can be raised, or replaced with hand-controlled devices. Wheelchair hoists, lifts or ramps may be customized according to

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7130-429: The case, called Toplak and Mrak v. Slovenia , was ongoing. The aim of the court procedure is to make accessible all polling places in Europe. Advances in information technology and telecommunications have represented a leap forward for accessibility. Access to the technology is restricted to those who can afford it, but it has become more widespread in Western countries in recent years. For those who use it, it provides

7245-605: The country was accepted as a member of the CPLP. Portuguese is also one of the official languages of the Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China of Macau (alongside Chinese ) and of several international organizations, including Mercosul , the Organization of Ibero-American States , the Union of South American Nations , the Organization of American States , the African Union ,

7360-507: The difficulty of obtaining appropriate stones), and wears quicker than concrete or asphalt, there is also dropping interest in investment and construction in it. Although there were once hundreds of calceteiros , most modern work is on conservation or major architectural projects. In spite of its historical and cultural value, this type of pavement has raised concerns in recent times, particularly in regards to its accessibility . Portuguese pavement has been noted for being particularly slippery,

7475-404: The elderly, wheelchair users, pregnant women and babies in strollers particularly difficult. Portuguese pavement is also especially harsh on some types of footwear . In Portugal, Porto completely replaced the traditional pavement of its city centre for granite blocks in 2005. In Brazil, while São Paulo has almost completely replaced the Portuguese pavement sidewalks of Paulista Avenue with

7590-467: The end of the 20th century, being most frequent among youngsters, and a number of studies have also shown an increase in its use in a number of other Brazilian dialects. Differences between dialects are mostly of accent and vocabulary , but between the Brazilian dialects and other dialects, especially in their most colloquial forms, there can also be some grammatical differences. The Portuguese-based creoles spoken in various parts of Africa, Asia, and

7705-701: The establishment of large Portuguese colonies in Angola, Mozambique, and Brazil, Portuguese acquired several words of African and Amerind origin, especially names for most of the animals and plants found in those territories. While those terms are mostly used in the former colonies, many became current in European Portuguese as well. From Kimbundu , for example, came kifumate > cafuné ('head caress') (Brazil), kusula > caçula ('youngest child') (Brazil), marimbondo ('tropical wasp') (Brazil), and kubungula > bungular ('to dance like

7820-585: The first Portuguese university in Lisbon (the Estudos Gerais , which later moved to Coimbra ) and decreed for Portuguese, then simply called the "common language", to be known as the Portuguese language and used officially. In the second period of Old Portuguese, in the 15th and 16th centuries, with the Portuguese discoveries , the language was taken to many regions of Africa, Asia, and the Americas . By

7935-506: The first areas where information technology improved the quality of life for disabled individuals is the voice operated wheelchair. Quadriplegics have the most profound disability, and the voice operated wheelchair technology was first developed in 1977 to provide increased mobility. The original version replaced the joystick system with a module that recognized 8 commands. Many other technology accommodation improvements have evolved from this initial development. Missing arms or fingers may make

8050-421: The following goals, among others: A European Accessibility Act was proposed in late 2012. This Act would establish standards within member countries for accessible products, services, and public buildings. The harmonization of accessibility standards within the EU "would facilitate the social integration of persons with disabilities and the elderly and their mobility across member states, thereby also fostering

8165-501: The form of Latin during that time), which greatly enriched the lexicon. Most literate Portuguese speakers were also literate in Latin; and thus they easily adopted Latin words into their writing, and eventually speech, in Portuguese. Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes once called Portuguese "the sweet and gracious language", while the Brazilian poet Olavo Bilac described it as a última flor do Lácio, inculta e bela ("the last flower of Latium , naïve and beautiful"). Portuguese

8280-466: The formal você , followed by the third person conjugation. Conjugation of verbs in tu has three different forms in Brazil (verb "to see": tu viste? , in the traditional second person, tu viu? , in the third person, and tu visse? , in the innovative second person), the conjugation used in the Brazilian states of Pará, Santa Catarina and Maranhão being generally traditional second person,

8395-530: The formation of creole languages such as that called Kristang in many parts of Asia (from the word cristão , "Christian"). The language continued to be popular in parts of Asia until the 19th century. Some Portuguese-speaking Christian communities in India , Sri Lanka , Malaysia , and Indonesia preserved their language even after they were isolated from Portugal. The end of the Old Portuguese period

8510-502: The free movement principle". Enforcement of the European Accessibility Act (EAA) begins in June 2025 Assistive technology is the creation of a new device that assists a person in completing a task that would otherwise be impossible. Some examples include new computer software programs like screen readers , and inventions such as assistive listening devices , including hearing aids , and traffic lights with

8625-492: The highest disability rate (14.3%), followed by refuse and recyclable material collectors (12.7%), personal care aides (11.9%), and janitors and building cleaners (11.8%). The rates for refuse and recyclable material collectors, personal care aides, and janitors and building cleaners were not statistically different from one another. Surveys of non-Western countries are limited, but the available statistics also indicate fewer jobs being filled by workers with disabilities. In India,

8740-604: The inside and outside of constructions, being later brought to ancient Greece and ancient Rome . The Romans used to pave the vias connecting the empire using materials to be found in the surroundings. Some of the Roman techniques introduced then are still applied on the calçada , most noticeably the use of a foundation and a surfacing . In its current form, Portuguese pavement was first used in Lisbon from 1840 to 1846, during repairs to São Jorge Castle directed by general and engineer Eusebio Pinheiro Furtado. These included

8855-419: The intention that basic access become a routine part of new home construction. Accessibility in the design of housing and household devices has become more prominent in recent decades due to a rapidly ageing population in developed countries. Ageing seniors may wish to continue living independently, but the ageing process naturally increases the disabilities that a senior citizen will experience. A growing trend

8970-406: The kind that is used in other Portuguese-speaking countries and learned in Brazilian schools. The predominance of Southeastern-based media products has established você as the pronoun of choice for the second person singular in both writing and multimedia communications. However, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, the country's main cultural center, the usage of tu has been expanding ever since

9085-557: The language has kept a relevant substratum of much older, Atlantic European Megalithic Culture and Celtic culture , part of the Hispano-Celtic group of ancient languages. In Latin, the Portuguese language is known as lusitana or (latina) lusitanica , after the Lusitanians , a pre-Celtic tribe that lived in the territory of present-day Portugal and Spain that adopted the Latin language as Roman settlers moved in. This

9200-823: The local authorities are responsible for organizing changes to make new connections. These requirements are defined in the UK Community Planning Acts legislation and more detailed guidance has been issued by the Department for Transport for each local authority . This includes the requirement to produce an Accessibility Plan under Community Planning legislation and to incorporate this within their Local Transport Plan . An Accessibility Plan sets out how each local authority plans to improve access to employment, learning, health care, food shops and other services of local importance, particularly for disadvantaged groups and areas. Accessibility targets are defined in

9315-436: The medieval language spoken in the northwestern medieval Kingdom of Galicia , which the County of Portugal once formed part of. This variety has been retrospectively named Galician-Portuguese , Old Portuguese, or Old Galician by linguists. It is in Latin administrative documents of the 9th century that written Galician-Portuguese words and phrases are first recorded. This phase is known as Proto-Portuguese, which lasted from

9430-610: The mid-16th century, Portuguese had become a lingua franca in Asia and Africa, used not only for colonial administration and trade but also for communication between local officials and Europeans of all nationalities. The Portuguese expanded across South America, across Africa to the Pacific Ocean, taking their language with them. Its spread was helped by mixed marriages between Portuguese and local people and by its association with Roman Catholic missionary efforts, which led to

9545-549: The minority Swiss Romansh language in many equivalent words such as maun ("hand"), bun ("good"), or chaun ("dog"). The Portuguese language is the only Romance language that preserves the clitic case mesoclisis : cf. dar-te-ei (I'll give thee), amar-te-ei (I'll love you), contactá-los-ei (I'll contact them). Like Galician , it also retains the Latin synthetic pluperfect tense: eu estivera (I had been), eu vivera (I had lived), vós vivêreis (you had lived). Romanian also has this tense, but uses

9660-1119: The most important languages when referring to loanwords. There are many examples such as: colchete / crochê ('bracket'/'crochet'), paletó ('jacket'), batom ('lipstick'), and filé / filete ('steak'/'slice'), rua ('street'), respectively, from French crochet , paletot , bâton , filet , rue ; and bife ('steak'), futebol , revólver , stock / estoque , folclore , from English "beef", "football", "revolver", "stock", "folklore." Examples from other European languages: macarrão ('pasta'), piloto ('pilot'), carroça ('carriage'), and barraca ('barrack'), from Italian maccherone , pilota , carrozza , and baracca ; melena ('hair lock'), fiambre ('wet-cured ham') (in Portugal, in contrast with presunto 'dry-cured ham' from Latin prae-exsuctus 'dehydrated') or ('canned ham') (in Brazil, in contrast with non-canned, wet-cured ( presunto cozido ) and dry-cured ( presunto cru )), or castelhano ('Castilian'), from Spanish melena ('mane'), fiambre and castellano. Portuguese belongs to

9775-471: The motifs and patterns would revolve around the sea and maritime exploration, and the pavement quickly became a symbol of Portuguese culture and identity, also spreading overseas to Portugal's colonies. Portuguese pavement spread to Spain in the late 19th century, most notably to Barcelona in 1896, where it was used to pave the sides of the Salón de San Juan , with later expansions in 1909 and 1917–1920. It

9890-463: The needs of the driver. Ergonomic adaptations, such as a lumbar support cushion, may also be needed. Generally, the more limiting the disability, the more expensive the adaptation needed for the vehicle. Financial assistance is available through some organizations, such as Motability in the United Kingdom, which requires a contribution by the prospective vehicle owner. Motability makes vehicles available for purchase or lease. When an employee with

10005-504: The newly innaugurated Avenida Atlântica , in its iconic wavy pattern. Portuguese pavement then began to proliferate through Rio. In the 1940s, the Portuguese calçada began to evolve in line with the principles of the International Style , developing abstract geometric patterns. In Brazil, this pavement was used in many projects directed by modernist architects, in which they blended traditional materials and techniques like

10120-462: The newspaper The Portugal News publishing data given from UNESCO, the highest potential for growth as an international language in southern Africa and South America . Portuguese is a globalized language spoken officially on five continents, and as a second language by millions worldwide. Since 1991, when Brazil signed into the economic community of Mercosul with other South American nations, namely Argentina , Uruguay and Paraguay , Portuguese

10235-547: The north of the country), Paraguay (10.7% or 636,000 people), Switzerland (550,000 in 2019, learning + mother tongue), Venezuela (554,000), and the United States (0.35% of the population or 1,228,126 speakers according to the 2007 American Community Survey ). In some parts of former Portuguese India , namely Goa and Daman and Diu , the language is still spoken by about 10,000 people. In 2014, an estimated 1,500 students were learning Portuguese in Goa. Approximately 2% of

10350-417: The number of Portuguese speakers is quickly increasing as Portuguese and Brazilian teachers are making great strides in teaching Portuguese in the schools all over the island. Additionally, there are many large Portuguese-speaking immigrant communities all over the world. According to estimates by UNESCO , Portuguese is the fastest-growing European language after English and the language has, according to

10465-486: The only language used in any contact, to only education, contact with local or international administration, commerce and services or the simple sight of road signs, public information and advertising in Portuguese. Portuguese is a mandatory subject in the school curriculum in Uruguay . Other countries where Portuguese is commonly taught in schools or where it has been introduced as an option include Venezuela , Zambia ,

10580-408: The passenger cabin is unobstructed from one or more entrances by the presence of steps, enabling easier access for the infirm or people with push chairs . A further aspect may be that the entrance and corridors are wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair. Low-floor vehicles have been developed for buses , trolleybuses , trams and trains . A low floor in the vehicular sense is normally combined in

10695-464: The peninsula and over the next 300 years totally integrated into the local populations. Some Germanic words from that period are part of the Portuguese lexicon, together with place names, surnames, and first names. With the Umayyad conquest beginning in 711, Arabic became the administrative and common language in the conquered regions, but most of the remaining Christian population continued to speak

10810-640: The people of Macau, China are fluent speakers of Portuguese. Additionally, the language is being very actively studied in the Chinese school system right up to the doctorate level. The Kristang people in Malaysia speak Kristang , a Portuguese-Malay creole; however, the Portuguese language itself is not widely spoken in the country. The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (in Portuguese Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa , with

10925-465: The platforms (generally by elevators , which may be restricted to disabled passengers only, so that the step-free access is not obstructed by non-disabled people taking advantage). In the United Kingdom , local transport authorities are responsible for checking that all people who live within their area can access essential opportunities and services, and where gaps in provision are identified

11040-463: The population of urban Angola speaks Portuguese natively, with approximately 85% fluent; these rates are lower in the countryside. Just over 50% (and rapidly increasing) of the population of Mozambique are native speakers of Portuguese, and 70% are fluent, according to the 2007 census. Portuguese is also spoken natively by 30% of the population in Guinea-Bissau, and a Portuguese-based creole

11155-585: The public has led to some technological innovations. Public announcement systems using audio induction loop technology can broadcast announcements directly into the hearing aid of anyone with a hearing impairment, making them useful in such public places as auditoriums and train stations. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) requires ‘appropriate measures’ to ensure people with disabilities are able to ‘access, on an equal basis with others','the physical environment’, ‘transportation’ and ‘other facilities and services open or provided to

11270-1186: The public sector and a large number of the reserved positions continue to be vacant despite nearly two decades of enactment of the PWD Act". Expenses related to adaptive or assistive technology required to participate in the workforce may be tax deductible expenses for individuals with a medical practitioner's prescription in some jurisdictions. Disability management (DM) is a specialized area of human resources that supports efforts of employers to better integrate and retain workers with disabilities. Some workplaces have policies in place to provide "reasonable accommodation" for employees with disabilities, but many do not. In some jurisdictions, employers may have legal requirements to end discrimination against persons with disabilities . It has been noted by researchers that where accommodations are in place for employees with disabilities, these frequently apply to individuals with "pre-determined or apparent disabilities as determined by national social protection or Equality Authorities", which include persons with pre-existing conditions who receive an official disability designation. One of

11385-409: The public’’. This requirement also applies to ‘roads’ and ‘transportation’ as well as ‘buildings, and other indoor and outdoor facilities’. At the same time, promotion of active travel , or 'shared space' initiatives to pedestrianise city centres can introduce unintended barriers, especially for pedestrians who are visually impaired and who can find these environments confusing or even dangerous. It

11500-415: The repavement of the castle's courtyards with a zigzag pattern of alternating black and white stones deemed atypical for the time. In 1848, Pinheiro was put in charge with the renewal of Rossio square , which he paved with a pattern of waves in homage to the sea crossed by Portuguese sailors . From then onward, the calçada began to spread throughout the streets of Lisbon and Portugal as a whole. Much of

11615-546: The result of expansion during colonial times, a cultural presence of Portuguese speakers is also found around the world. Portuguese is part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia and the County of Portugal , and has kept some Celtic phonology. With approximately 236 million native speakers and 27 million second language speakers, Portuguese has approximately 263.8 million total speakers. It

11730-501: The same tools, services, organizations and facilities as non-disabled people (e.g., museums ). Article 9 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities commits signatories to provide for full accessibility in their countries. While it is often used to describe facilities or amenities to assist people with impaired mobility, through the provision of facilities like wheelchair ramps ,

11845-508: The streamlining of their accessibility services, allowing passengers requiring assistance to inform the company with as little as 10 minutes' notice at all 189 stations on its network, replacing an older scheme wherein assisted journeys had to be booked six hours to a day in advance. The system will utilise clear signage at stations and QR codes , allowing customers to send details of the assistance they require and their planned journey to staff remotely. Making public services fully accessible to

11960-777: The term can include other types of disability. Accessible facilities therefore extend to areas such as Braille signage, elevators , audio signals at pedestrian crossings , walkway contours, website accessibility and accessible publishing . In the United States, government mandates including Section 508, WCAG, DDA are all enforcing practices to standardize accessibility testing engineering in product development. Accessibility modifications may be required to enable persons with disabilities to gain access to education, employment, transportation, housing, recreation, or even simply to exercise their right to vote. Various countries have legislation requiring physical accessibility which are (in order of enactment): Legislation may also be enacted on

12075-516: The tires enables wheelchair users to move over soft surfaces, such as deep snow on ski hills, and sandy beaches. Assistive technology and adaptive technology have a key role in developing the means for people with disabilities to live more independently, and to more fully participate in mainstream society. In order to have access to assistive or adaptive technology, however, educating the public and even legislating requirements to incorporate this technology have been necessary. The UN CRPD, and courts in

12190-439: The use of a keyboard and mouse difficult or impossible. Technological improvements such as speech recognition devices and software can improve access. A communication disorder interferes with the ability to produce clearly understandable speech. There can be many different causes, such as nerve degeneration, muscle degeneration, stroke, and vocal cord injury. The modern method to deal with speaking disabilities has been to provide

12305-522: The workplace, and in school, expanding the ability of the user to participate in various spheres of daily life. Augmentative and alternative communication technology is one such area of IT progress. It includes inventions such as speech-generating devices , teletypewriter devices, adaptive pointing devices to replace computer mouse devices, and many others. Mobile telecommunications devices and computer applications are also equipped with accessibility features. They can be adapted to create accessibility to

12420-515: The world. Portuguese, being a language spread on all continents, has official status in several international organizations. It is one of twenty official languages of the European Union , an official language of NATO, the Organization of American States (alongside Spanish, French and English), and one of eighteen official languages of the European Space Agency . Portuguese is a working language in nonprofit organisations such as

12535-533: The world. The museum is the first of its kind in the world. In 2015 the museum was partially destroyed in a fire, but restored and reopened in 2020. Portuguese is spoken by approximately 200 million people in South America, 30 million in Africa, 15 million in Europe, 5 million in North America and 0.33 million in Asia and Oceania. It is the native language of the vast majority of the people in Portugal, Brazil and São Tomé and Príncipe (95%). Around 75% of

12650-424: Was charged with promoting and ensuring respect. There are also significant Portuguese-speaking immigrant communities in many territories including Andorra (17.1%), Bermuda , Canada (400,275 people in the 2006 census), France (1,625,000 people), Japan (400,000 people), Jersey , Luxembourg (about 25% of the population as of 2021), Namibia (about 4–5% of the population, mainly refugees from Angola in

12765-537: Was marked by the publication of the Cancioneiro Geral by Garcia de Resende , in 1516. The early times of Modern Portuguese, which spans the period from the 16th century to the present day, were characterized by an increase in the number of learned words borrowed from Classical Latin and Classical Greek because of the Renaissance (learned words borrowed from Latin also came from Renaissance Latin ,

12880-475: Was not until 1905 when Portuguese pavement was first used in Brazil, in the city of Manaus . Belo Horizonte followed suit, and then Rio de Janeiro . In Rio, mayor Francisco Pereira Passos was a strong promoter of implementing the calçada as part of the city's urban renewal plan, which was subsequently adopted in the reworking of Avenida Rio Branco , importing calceteiros , designs and even stones from Portugal. The remaining building materials were destined to

12995-554: Was the language of the poetry of the troubadours in France. The Occitan digraphs lh and nh , used in its classical orthography, were adopted by the orthography of Portuguese , presumably by Gerald of Braga , a monk from Moissac , who became bishop of Braga in Portugal in 1047, playing a major role in modernizing written Portuguese using classical Occitan norms. Portugal became an independent kingdom in 1139, under King Afonso I of Portugal . In 1290, King Denis of Portugal created

13110-585: Was the loss of intervocalic l and n , sometimes followed by the merger of the two surrounding vowels, or by the insertion of an epenthetic vowel between them: cf. Lat. salire ("to exit"), tenere ("to have"), catena ("jail"), Port. sair , ter , cadeia . When the elided consonant was n , it often nasalized the preceding vowel: cf. Lat. manum ("hand"), ranam ("frog"), bonum ("good"), Old Portuguese mão , rãa , bõo (Portuguese: mão , rã , bom ). This process

13225-462: Was the source of most of the language's distinctive nasal diphthongs. In particular, the Latin endings -anem , -anum and -onem became -ão in most cases, cf. Lat. canis ("dog"), germanus ("brother"), ratio ("reason") with Modern Port. cão , irmão , razão , and their plurals -anes , -anos , -ones normally became -ães , -ãos , -ões , cf. cães , irmãos , razões . This also occurs in

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