Portuguese and Brazilian Studies

Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at the University of Kansas

The University of Kansas has had a long tradition of interdisciplinary research and teaching in the field of Brazilian studies. Classes in Brazilian history, geography, literature, cinema, and music populated KU curriculum even before Brazilian studies became such an avid area of academic interest and inquiry as it is now in the United States.  KU students have consistently learned the Portuguese language and about Brazilian culture for decades. We currently offer graduate and undergraduate level courses on Brazil and with significant Brazil content through different KU departments and the university’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Graduate students can apply for a Graduate Certificate in Brazilian Studies from the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and undergraduate students can pursue a Minor in Brazilian Studies from the Department of Spanish and Portuguese.

Brazil has been considered a field of study by itself for long now. The existence of Associations such as BRASA, the Brazilian Studies Association, and Brazil Centers and Institutes at prominent universities all over the world are evidence of the country’s current standing as a source of interdisciplinary study. There are currently “Brazil Centers” at institutions such as the University of Oxford, Georgetown, Tulane, and UCLA, Brazil programs at Harvard and Ohio State, an Institute for Brazilian Studies at the University of Illinois, and Departments of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at Brown University and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Brazil’s (post)colonial history, multicultural (and multiracial) character, its vibrant and visible globalized cultural products, and the country’s overall unique position in the world today explain the growth of academic interest in it.

The University of Kansas remains one of the frontrunners in promoting the study of Brazilian society and culture in the United States. It is also home to the George C. A. Boeherer Luso-Brazilian Collection, a major source of printed and manuscript materials from the late 18th and 19th century Portugal and Brazil.  On this website, you can find information about KU’s interdisciplinary faculty teaching and researching on Brazil, learn about their current projects and individual and institutional partnerships, and about their Brazil-related publications. You can also find information about our Portuguese language program and see what graduate and undergraduate classes with substantial Brazil content are being taught. This is the place to find out more about our study abroad programs, as well as about lectures on Brazil in our campus. We also post here the activities of BRASA, KU's active Brazilian student association, through Facebook feeds. BRASA alongside Portuguese faculty, organize weekly Portuguese language tables in the Fall and Spring semesters.

If you are interested in receiving more information about the Portuguese & Brazilian Studies at KU, or any of our activities, please contact us at spanport@ku.edu.