The Department of Portuguese of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FAH), University of Macau (UM), recently held an opening ceremony for its 37th Portuguese Language Summer Course in the auditorium of the Student Activity Centre. This year’s summer course has resumed face-to-face teaching and includes language courses and a series of cultural activities, attracting a total of 280 students from Macao, mainland China, and South Korea.

A group photo

UM’s Portuguese Language Summer Course is committed to providing participants with an in-depth knowledge of the Portuguese language, enhancing their awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity, and making them realise the importance of the Portuguese language. The university hopes that the three-week summer course will enable the participants to learn Portuguese under the guidance of language teachers and cultural animators, with whom they will forge close links and friendships.

The Opening Ceremony of the Portuguese Language Summer Course

This year’s summer course is rich in content. In addition to language courses, it covers the historical, social, economic and political dimensions of Macao and Portuguese-speaking countries. It also offers students at intermediate and advanced levels courses on history, contemporary Portugal, translation, and interpretation. Furthermore, the summer course organises a series of cultural activities conducted in Portuguese to promote both teaching and learning in an entertaining way. Among them, workshops on capoeira, Portuguese folk dance, oenology, and poetry enable participants to acquire a theoretical and practical understanding of the Portuguese language and its culture. The summer course will also include a concert with a band from Casa de Portugal em Macau.

This year’s Portuguese Language Summer Course is supported by the Macao Foundation, the Macao Post and Telecommunications Bureau, and the Macao Government Tourism Office. Guests attending the opening ceremony included Rui Martins, vice rector of UM; Xu Jie, dean of the FAH; João Veloso, head of the Department of Portuguese; and José Pascoal and Vítor Silva, programme coordinators of the summer course.

The Closing Ceremony will take place on the 28th of July 2023, at 5 pm in the Aula Magna of the University (building N2).