Angolans in Portugal

Angolans in Portugal

Total population
(162,604 (2011))
Regions with significant populations
Lisbon
Languages
Portuguese

Angolans in Portugal form the country's second-largest group of African migrants, after Cape Verdeans. As of 2006, official statistics showed 28,854 legal Angolan residents in Portugal. However, this number is likely an underestimate of the true size of the community, as it counts neither illegal migrants nor people of Angolan origin who hold Portuguese citizenship.

Migration history

Large-scale migratory flow from Angola to Portugal began in the 1970s, around the time of Angolan independence. However, this early flow consisted largely of retornados, white Portuguese born in Angola. The bulk of mixed-race or black African migrants came later. After the 2002 peace agreement which ended the Angolan Civil War, many Angolan migrants in Portugal returned to Angola. By 2003, statistics of the Angolan embassy in Portugal showed that between 8,000 and 10,000 had already returned, and that 400 people a week were flying from Portugal to the Angolan capital Luanda. However, statistics of the Instituto Nacional de Estatística showed that the population of Angolan legal residents did not decrease from 2001 to 2003, but instead grew by 12.6% (from 22,751 to 25,616 people).

Culture

Angolan migrants in Portugal do not have a particularly homogeneous culture. However, two important elements of their self-described common identity are calor humano (human warmth) and convivência (living together), part of "African hospitality" and "African solidarity" which they feel is an important difference between Angolan and Portuguese social relations.

Angolan migrants in Portugal have had a significant influence on the popularisation of the kuduro musical style. Cinematic portrayals include Leonel Vieira's 1998 blockbuster Zona J.

Further reading

• . A study of Angolan migrants in Portugal, their self-perception, and their perception by Portuguese people.