Portuguese Africans () are Portuguese people born or permanently settled in Africa (they should not be confused with Portuguese of Black African ancestry). The largest Portuguese African population lives in Portugal numbering over 1 million with large and important minorities living in South Africa, Namibia and the Portuguese-speaking African countries (Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe and Equatorial Guinea).The descendants of the Portuguese settlers who were born and "raised" locally since Portuguese colonial time were called crioulos. Much of the original population is unnumbered having been assimilated into Portugal, Brazil, and other countries.
Some from Angola or Mozambique went to South Africa, Malawi, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, the United States, Brazil or Europe. Most Portuguese Africans are Portuguese-South Africans, and Portuguese Angolans, mainly as a result of direct migration from Portugal, namely from Madeira.
PALOP countries The overwhelming majority of Portuguese Africans are found in countries where Portuguese enjoys the status of official language. This is due to historical, linguistic and cultural reasons. They are commonly known as "PALOP". The acronym "PALOP" stands for "Países Africanos de Língua Oficial Portuguesa" in Portuguese, which translates to "African Countries with Portuguese as the Official Language" in English.
Guinea-Bissau became an independent country in 1974, followed by the rest of the colonies in 1975. Most Portuguese residents, for this reason, returned to Portugal, where they were called retornados.
When the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) was founded in 1996, some Portuguese and a number of Brazilians of Portuguese ethnic background arrived for providing economic and educational aid to the Portuguese-speaking African countries. Some of these people of Portuguese background adopted Africa as their permanent home.
Western Africa Excluding Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau (Portuguese-speaking African countries), there aren't large Portuguese communities in Western African countries.
Benin
In Benin, despite there not being nor Portuguese diplomatic representation neither an expressive Portuguese community, there is a remembrance of the Portuguese community once settled there.
Benin was where ancient and illustrious civilizations which developed from city-states were located. Local kingdoms such as the kingdoms of Aladá - founded in the 12th century - or that of Dahomey - established in 1600 - developed local trade which, from the 16th century onwards, was based on the slave trade and, after the abolition of the trade in 1807, on palm oil . This economy facilitated the establishment, on the coast known as the Slave Coast, of trading posts for the Europeans, namely the Portuguese, the first to arrive in the region and to do business with coastal rulers.Série de autores e consultores, Dorling Kindersley, History (título original), 2007, , pág 554
The Europeans developed forts on the coast as military bases in order to impose a military threat on the coastal ethnic groups so that they would supply them with slaves (even if it was gold that mainly interested the Portuguese, during the first colonizing settlements) in the Gulf of Guinea.
In particular, the Portuguese fort in Ouidah (São João Baptista de Ajudá) is still standing at was transformed into a history museum by the African country's government. Ouidah, a Portuguese exclave until 1961 and a former port for the slave trade, was returned to the newly independent state of Benin one year after the French granted it its independence.
Also, the country's capital Porto-Novo, draws its name from the Portuguese city of Porto, a reminder of when the Portuguese settled there in 1752; Porto-Novo is the Portuguese name of "New Porto".
Burkina Faso The Portuguese community in Burkina Faso, on the other hand, seems to be continuously decreasing since relations were formally established in 1992. Even though there has never been a significative Portuguese presence in the country, as of the 2014 uprising there were 20 Portuguese living in the African nation. Due to the political instability and the death of two Portuguese nationals in 2016, the community has decreased to 5 people only, according to data released in the occasion of the 2022 coup. Despite the recent issues and the fact that Portugal doesn't have an official representation in Ouagadougou, relations, both diplomatic – the Portuguese chargé d'affaires visited Burkina Faso in 2023 – and cultural, are strengthening. Between 2008 and 2012 and again between 2015 and 2019, the coach of the Burkina Faso national football team was Portuguese football coach Paulo Duarte.
Interestingly, the ancient name for the country "Haute Volta" in French and used up until 1984 comes from Portuguese. The name was given by Portuguese gold traders from Ghana. Volta, with the meaning of "to turn", "turn". The river was their exploratory limit before turning back (voltar); on the other hand, the name could also refer to the numerous meanders that characterize a good part of the course water.Volta - etymology
Gambia
Relations between Portugal and the Gambia aren't very strong: only 6 Portuguese are officially registered as living in the Gambia and the bilateral trade amounts to a little over 2 million € per year. There is no Portuguese embassy in the country but there are direct flights connecting Lisbon to Banjul though. Since 2018 Portugal is active in humanitarian projects in the country along with other EU states such as Germany and Belgium.
Relations between Portugal and Gambia, despite not being particularly significant today, date back to the 15th century; in fact, even the country's name comes from the Portuguese word for trade, cambio. The Portuguese brought Christianity to the country and built the first church in Gambia: today an estimated 2% of Gambians is Catholic. Portuguese explorer Nuno Tristão and Venetian Luiz de Cadamosto as well as Genoese trader Antoniotto Usodimare (both sailing for Portugal) were the first Europeans exploring the Gambia river.Gray, p. 5
They arrived at the River Gambia in June 1455 and proceeded a short way upstream. They repeated the voyage the next year in May 1456, proceeding further upstream and making contact with some of the native chiefs. When they were near the river's mouth, they cast anchor at an island where one of their sailors, who had previously died of a fever, was buried. As his name was Andrew, they named the island St Andrew's Island.
Following this expedition, the Portuguese made endeavors to establish a settlement along the riverbanks. However, none of these settlements attained significant proportions, and a considerable number of settlers intermarried with the indigenous population. Despite such intermingling, these settlers adhered to Portuguese attire and traditions, maintaining their Christian faith. Communities of Portuguese lineage persisted in the Gambia until the 18th century, with Portuguese churches established in San Domingo, Geregia, and Tankular by 1730. Another Portuguese settlement further up the river was established at Setuku near Fattatenda. Towards the close of the 16th century, the Songhai Empire, subject to persistent Portuguese incursions, eventually succumbed to collapse.
Following the seizure of the Portuguese throne by Philip II in 1580, a contingent of Portuguese individuals sought sanctuary in England. Among these refugees was Francisco Ferreira, who, in 1587, captained two English vessels to the Gambia, returning with a lucrative cargo comprising hides and ivory. In 1588, António, Prior of Crato, asserting a claim to the Portuguese throne, granted London and Devon merchants the exclusive trading rights between the Rivers Senegal and Gambia. This privilege was formally ratified for a decade through letters patent issued by Queen Elizabeth I. Despite dispatching numerous ships to the region, these merchants, deterred by Portuguese animosity, refrained from venturing south beyond Joal, situated 30 miles north of the river mouth. Their accounts depicted the Gambia as "a river of clandestine commerce and wealth concealed by the Portuguese." Presently, in the Gambia, approximately 1% of the population, or 25,000 individuals, still converse in a Portuguese creole. The Portuguese culture and Portuguese creole in The Gambia are closely related to the one Casamance region of Senegal, the country that surrounds Gambia.
Ghana
Although small – standing at 200 people – the Portuguese community in Ghana is among the largest in Western Africa. The Portuguese are mostly active in construction and volunteering. Although relations aren't strong today – despite a recent increase in trade- the Portuguese were the first Europeans arriving in Ghana, which they called "Costa de Ouro" or "Gold Coast". The name would later be used by the Britons to name their colony. In fact, the Portuguese were active in the gold and slave trade in nowadays Ghana. In particular, the most notable element of Portuguese heritage in Ghana is Elmina Castle, a fort built in 1482 as Castelo de São Jorge da Mina. It was the first trading post built on the Gulf of Guinea, the oldest European building in existence south of the Sahara and one of the most important stops on the route of the Atlantic slave trade. Elmina Castle is a historical site, and was a major filming location for Werner Herzog's 1987 drama film Cobra Verde. The castle is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, along with other castles and forts in Ghana, because of its testimony to the Atlantic slave trade. It is a major tourist attraction in the Central Region of Ghana.
The Portuguese linguistic influences in Ghana are nearly nonexistent, likely due to the fortress serving solely as a trading post in the slave trade, where individuals were, for instance, exchanged for gold. Being precisely a crucial center for the gold trade, interactions between the few Portuguese residents and the local villagers were prohibited to prevent illicit commerce or smuggling. In 1637, the fortress was seized by the Dutch. The Gold Coast slaves came from the Benin-Elmina route, supplying Portuguese with cotton, cloth, and beads. Gold, primarily from Ghana, became the main export. The introduction of foreign crops globalized agriculture, and Portuguese remained the dominant language of exchange along the Gulf Coast even after other European powers arrived post-1642 cession. The Portuguese initiated the internal African slave trade, laying the foundation for later human trafficking networks exploited by the Dutch and British during the Atlantic slave trade. Portuguese shipping prowess fostered long-distance river trading in West African states, boosting Gulf of Guinea trade. This stimulated boatbuilding and seamanship, with Portuguese creole emerging as a key trade language, second only to Portuguese. Intermarriage resulted in a substantial mixed-race population along the Gold Coast. Urbanization around Elmina was prompted by Portuguese efforts to establish a municipality. Native governors, or braffos, gained Portuguese-sanctioned authority, leading to increased migration from the interior. Maize and cassava, introduced by the Portuguese through trans-Atlantic trade, thrived and became West African dietary staples. Portuguese influence integrated the Gold Coast into the global economy, centralizing smaller states into larger political entities. Increased trade volume in coastal cities connected inland African communities with European trade, shaping the region's economic landscape.
Guinea
In Guinea there are around 60 resident Portuguese citizens as of 2020. According to the Portuguese Foreign Ministry, there were up to 300 Portuguese living in the country in 2000 but political instability made many of those once living in the Western African country migrating back to Portugal.