House of BraganzaThe Most Serene House of Braganza (Sereníssima Casa de Bragança), also known as the Brigantine dynasty (dinastia Brigantina), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Americas. The house was founded by Afonso I, 1st Duke of Braganza, illegitimate son of King John I of Portugal of the House of Aviz, and would eventually grow into one of the wealthiest and most powerful noble houses of Iberia during the Renaissance period.
Culture of PortugalThe culture of Portugal is a very rich result of a complex flow of many different civilizations during the past millennia. From prehistoric cultures, to its Pre-Roman civilizations (such as the Lusitanians, the Gallaeci, the Celtici, and the Cynetes, amongst others), passing through its contacts with the Phoenician-Carthaginian world, the Roman period (see Hispania, Lusitania and Gallaecia), the Germanic invasions of the Suebi, Buri (see Kingdom of the Suebi) and Visigoths (see Visigothic Kingdom), Viking incursions, Sephardic Jewish settlement, and finally, the Moorish Umayyad invasion of Hispania and the subsequent expulsion, during the Reconquista, all have made an imprint on the country's culture and history.
House of AvizThe House of Aviz (Portuguese: Casa de Avis), also known as the Joanine Dynasty (Dinastia Joanina), was a dynasty of Portuguese origin which flourished during the Renaissance and the period of the Portuguese discoveries, when Portugal expanded its power globally. The house was founded by King John I of Portugal, Grand-Master of the Order of Aviz and illegitimate son of King Pedro I (of the Portuguese House of Burgundy), who ascended to the throne after successfully pressing his claim during the 1383–1385 Portuguese interregnum.
Portuguese literaturePortuguese literature is literature written in the Portuguese language. In its strictest sense it is literature written particularly by citizens of Portugal; more generally it may also refer to Lusophone literature written by authors from Brazil, Angola, Mozambique, and other Portuguese-speaking countries and territories. This article focuses on Portuguese literature sensu stricto, that is, literature from the country of Portugal.
Demographics of BelgiumDemographic features of the population of Belgium include ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects. All figures are from the National Institute for Statistics unless otherwise indicated. Belgium had a population of 11,190,846 people on 1 January 2015 as compared to the 10,839,905 people on 1 January 2010, an increase of 601,000 in comparison to 2000 (10,239,085 inhabitants). Between 1990 (9,947,782 inhabitants) and 2000 the increase was only 291,000.
Terceira IslandTerceira (tɨɾˈsɐjɾɐ) is a volcanic island in the Azores archipelago, in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the larger islands of the archipelago, with a population of 53,311 inhabitants in an area of approximately 396.75 km2. It is the location of the Azores' oldest city, Angra do Heroísmo, the historical capital of the archipelago and UNESCO World Heritage Site; the seat of the judicial system (Supreme Court); and the main Air Force base, Base Aérea no 4 at Lajes, with a United States Air Force detachment.
Age of DiscoveryThe Age of Discovery or the Age of Exploration, part of the early modern period and largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, was a period from approximately the 15th century to the 17th century, during which seafarers from a number of European countries explored, colonized, and conquered regions across the globe. The extensive overseas exploration, particularly the European colonisation of the Americas, with the Spanish and Portuguese at the forefront, later joined by the Dutch, English, and French, marked an increased adoption of colonialism as a government policy in several European states.
African diasporaThe global African diaspora is the worldwide collection of communities descended from Native Africans or people from Africa, predominantly in the Americas. The term most commonly refers to the descendants of the native West and Central Africans who were enslaved and shipped to the Americas via the Atlantic slave trade between the 16th and 19th centuries, with their largest populations in the United States, Brazil, and Haiti (in that order).
Portuguese cuisineThe oldest known book on Portuguese cuisine (Cozinha portuguesa), entitled Livro de Cozinha da Infanta D. Maria de Portugal, from the 16th century, describes many popular dishes of meat, fish, poultry and others. Culinária Portuguesa, by António-Maria De Oliveira Bello, better known as Olleboma, was published in 1936. Despite being relatively restricted to an Atlantic, Celtic sustenance, the Portuguese cuisine also has strong French and Mediterranean influences.
HispanophoneHispanophone refers to anything related to the Spanish language. In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The Hispanic culture is the legacy of the vast and prolonged Spanish Empire, and so the term can refer to people whose cultural background is primarily associated with Spain, regardless of racial or geographical differences. The whole sense of identity of the Hispanic population and the Hispanophones is sometimes referred by the term Hispanidad (Hispanicity).
