Il latino in Brasile nel XVI secolo: una prospettiva storiografica sull’insegnamento dei gesuiti nel progetto missionario durante la colonizzazione portoghese

Abstract

This paper aims to reflect on how Jesuit missionaries practiced Latin language teaching, based on the Ratio Studiorum educational method, to shape Brazilian colonial identity. Latin in 16th-century Brazil was used for various purposes, but primarily as a tool for integrating European ecclesiastical and academic culture into Portuguese overseas colonization. In Jesuit colleges, the Divinae Litterae (Theology) and the Humanae Litterae (Classics) were studied, with Greek being taught instead of Tupi. After reflecting on the use of Latin in Renaissance Humanism in 16th-century Brazil, we hope to demonstrate that, although Latin was used in various discursive genres, didactic discourse in the teaching of various scientific disciplines is what characterizes the practice of Latin in 16th-century Brazil. Specifically, this study contextualizes José de Anchieta’s work in Jesuit education and highlights the complex linguistic and cultural dynamics of colonial Brazil, as it sheds light on the enduring legacy of Jesuit education, revealing the intricate interplay between language and culture in the formation of Portuguese-Brazilian society.

10.4424/lam142025-4