Portuguese-Speaking Countries in Africa

African countries where Portuguese has official or major working status.

Country Capital Region Population
Angola Luanda Central Africa 35,600,000
Cape Verde Praia West Africa 560,000
Guinea-Bissau Bissau West Africa 2,100,000
Mozambique Maputo Southern Africa 33,900,000
São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé Central Africa 230,000

Portuguese in Africa

The list above shows African countries where Portuguese has official or widely-used status. These language groupings largely reflect colonial history — Portuguese entered Africa through colonization, missionary education, trade and diplomacy — but today is owned and shaped by African speakers, writers, broadcasters and artists.

Note that most African countries are multilingual; this list reflects official or major working languages, not the dozens of indigenous tongues spoken in each nation.