Colonial Brazilian Portuguese: a new research agenda between Classical Portuguese and Modern Brazilian Portuguese

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to propose some elements for creating a new research agenda for the shaping of Modern Brazilian Portuguese during the period of Colonial Brazil. To do so, we advance the hypothesis that there has been a linguistic variety acquired by white Portuguese descendants born in Brazil, intervening between Classical Portuguese - one of the languages found in Colonial Brazil - and the prestigious strand of Modern Brazilian Portuguese. We expose linguistic and socio-historical evidence that put forward the validity of this hypothesis. We then examine some theoretical and methodological implications for the study of this variety, from a microcomparative syntactic viewpoint. Finally, we propose some research questions, centered on the identification of conservative and innovative features in Modern Brazilian Portuguese from the study of Colonial Brazilian Portuguese.