Portuguese in Germany (German: Portugiesen in Deutschland) are citizens and residents of Germany who are of Portuguese descent.
Portuguese in Germany (also known as Portuguese Germans/ German Portuguese Community or, in Portuguese, known as Portugueses na Alemanha / Comunidade portuguesa na Alemanha / Luso-alemães) are the citizens or residents of Germany whose ethnic origins lie in Portugal.
Portuguese Germans are Portuguese-born citizens with German citizenship or German-born citizens of Portuguese ancestry or citizenship.
There are about 245,000 Portuguese people living in Germany as of 2021. They represent 0.29% of the country's population.[2][3]
History
Map showing the location of the two countries within EuropeRegional distribution of Portuguese citizens in Germany in 2021
Portuguese in Germany have been known since the 16th century. They are now part of the Portuguese diaspora scattered around the world and are generally considered low profile and well integrated.[4]
Relative frequency of Portuguese nationals at county level 2014 (relative to other foreign populations)
The initial larger Portuguese community in Germany emerged during the 16th century in the Hanseatic city of Hamburg, when Sephardic Jews sought refuge here from the Inquisition.[5]
The Portuguese Armando Rodrigues de Sá was officially welcomed in 1964 as the millionth "guest worker" in Germany and was given a certificate of honor and a two-seater Zündapp Sport Combinette – Mokick.[12]
Due to growing xenophobia and an increase in unemployment among foreign workers, the German government passed a law in October 1983 to finance the voluntary return of foreign workers to their countries of origin. Foreign workers who were legally recruited and residing in the country individually received a reimbursement of 10,500 Deutsche Marks – approximately the amount they had contributed to the German social security system (retirement fund).[16][17][18][19][20]
This program was only applicable to foreigners leaving Germany before 30 June 1984. According to Zimmermann et al. (1998: 1–7), 20 thousand Portuguese workers participated in the program. As a result, the Portuguese population in Germany decreased to 69 thousand by 1987.[21][22][23][24][25]
Nowadays, the immigrants are mostly well-educated, often holding academic qualifications. In recent years, Berlin has become particularly attractive to Portuguese academics, specialists, and students, even surpassing Hamburg as the city with the largest Portuguese community.[26][27]
The largest Portuguese community is located in Hamburg, where about 25,000 people with Portuguese heritage live. There is also a Portugiesenviertel (Portuguese quarter) in Hamburg near the Port of Hamburg and between the subway stations of Landungsbrücken and Baumwall where many Portuguese restaurants and cafes are located there.[28][29][30][31]
In Germany there are 145 Portuguese associations.[32] The Portuguese associations are found all over Germany and are often related to sports centers, language centers or community centers.[33][34] Despite the widespread presence of Portuguese centers, there is a higher concentration in Nordrhein-Westphalen (North Rhine-Westphalia), Baden-Württemberg and Hessen: despite hosting around 42% of Germany's population, these states (Länder) host around 60% of the Portuguese community.[35]
The two countries enjoy friendly relationships and mutual trust, witnessing increasing trade as well.[32][39][40][41]
The Portuguese community in Germany retains strong ties with its homeland and, between 2000 and 2021, it has sent approximately 4.5 billioneuros (€) to Portugal in remittances. In the same timeframe, Germans in Portugal (numbering around 20,500 individuals)[42] have sent approximately 136.4 million euros (€) to Germany.[43]
In several German cities, one can find associations dedicated to Portuguese culture, parishes where Portuguese is spoken, and classes specifically tailored for native Portuguese speakers, which are also available in mainstream schools. For instance, at the Max Planck High School in Dortmund, Portuguese is offered up to the Abitur level.[44]
The Portuguese cultural associations are predominantly organized under the Federal Association FAPA (Federal Association of Portuguese Associations in Germany). Additionally, the Portuguese cultural institute, Instituto Camões, operates a language center in Hamburg and a cultural center in Berlin, along with various partnerships and lectureships.[45][46]
Portugal Post, a Portuguese-language newspaper, has been published throughout Germany since 1993, with its headquarters located in Dortmund. Since 2018, its base of operations has shifted to Berlin.[47]
Nowadays, Portuguese is not only a heritage language for migrants coming from countries such as Portugal or Brazil, but it is also studied by German people with interest towards Lusophone culture.[48][49][50][51]
Julia Löhr [de] (1877-1927): She was the archetype of the fictional character Ines Institoris in Thomas Mann's novel Doctor Faustus
Carla Mann [pt] (1881-1910): German actress. Thomas Mann's sister
Aquilino Ribeiro (1885-1963): Portuguese writer and diplomat. He is generally considered to be one of the great Portuguesenovelists of the 20th century and in 1960, he was nominated for the Nobel lPrize in Literature. He traveled to Germany several times in the 1920s and wrote a book about it (including Berlin, Hildesheim, Hamburg)
Viktor Mann [de] (1890-1949): German writer. Thomas Mann's brother
Arthur Duarte (1895-1982): Portuguese actor and director
Fernando Ribeiro (Hrsg.): Alemanha: Portugal. Edições Humus, Ribeirão 2014, ISBN978-989-755-025-6
Entre o Cais e o Sonho – 50 Jahre Portugiesen in Deutschland – 50 Jahre Millionster Gastarbeiter,documentation of the symposium "Looking back to shape the future" (Cologne, 13 September 2014), Portugal-Post-Verlag 2014
^Ohndorf (1986). "The various forms, reasons and motivations for return migration of persons who voluntarily decide to return to their countries of origin". International Migration (Geneva, Switzerland). 24 (1): 213–217. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2435.1986.tb00113.x. ISSN0020-7985. PMID12314944.
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