Marco Neves
Writer · university lecturer · researcher
Books about languages, stories and words.
A Portuguese author and scholar whose work moves between books, university research and public communication.
Full website in Portuguese
About
Marco Neves writes about the history of Portuguese, the journeys of words, writing, translation and the cultures of the Iberian Peninsula.
He also publishes fiction and travel writing. Most of his books are currently available in Portuguese.
Books
Selected books
As Raízes da Língua
Fifty everyday words open fifty paths through the history of Portuguese, from its most distant roots to the language spoken today.
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História do Português desde o Big Bang
A long history of Portuguese that begins well before Portugal and follows the language from its remote origins to the present.
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Palavras que o Português Deu ao Mundo
The stories of Portuguese words that travelled across seven seas and reached eighty languages around the world.
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Atlas Histórico da Escrita
A visual history of writing systems and of the inventions that made it possible to preserve the human voice in signs.
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A Portuguesa que Odiava o Catalão
Travel writing from the Iberian Peninsula, attentive to languages, cities and the misunderstandings between neighbours.
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A Baleia que Engoliu um Espanhol
A novel of adventure and travel made up of five interconnected stories, with Peniche at the heart of its imaginative world.
Book detailsAcademic work
Translation, technology and language history
Marco Neves completed his PhD in Languages, Literatures and Cultures — Translation Studies in 2020. His research spans translation practice and teaching, language technologies and artificial intelligence, epistemic translation, the history of Portuguese, Galician–Portuguese relations and Iberian studies.
NOVA FCSH
University lecturer since 2011, teaching at undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels.
CETAPS
Researcher in Translation Studies, language technology, languages, literatures and the circulation of knowledge.
EPISTRAN
Co-coordinator, with Karen Bennett, of the international and interdisciplinary Epistemic Translation project.
Translation Matters
Member of the editorial board of the open-access academic journal devoted to Translation Studies.
Research
Selected academic publications
Translating Systems of Knowledge: Beyond Resemiotization
Cultus: The Journal of Intercultural Mediation and Communication 18, pp. 7–16 · with Giuseppina Di Gregorio
(Inter-)Epistemic Translation: A New Paradigm?
Translation Matters 6(1), pp. 1–9 · with Karen Bennett
European Union Law in Translation: Core Principles and Useful Tools for Undergraduate Translation Courses
Current Trends in Translation Teaching and Learning E 10, pp. 109–131
A Lei Paz-Andrade e o Aproveitamento do Português para a Tradução Automática em Galego
Revista de Llengua i Dret 78, pp. 35–55 · with José Ramom Pichel, Iria de Dios Flores e Pablo Gamallo
A World without Translation: The Monolingual Utopia
The Journal of Linguistic and Intercultural Education 15(3), pp. 61–70
Talks and media
Talks and public conversations
The history of Portuguese through words
Etymology and language change explained through words used every day.
Accents, identity and diversity
Pronunciation, variation and linguistic prejudice in contemporary Portuguese.
Translation, technology and AI
What tools can automate, where risk begins and why context still matters.
Writing clearly
Grammar and punctuation as practical tools for organising ideas and guiding readers.
Television, radio and online video
Watch and listen
Marco Neves writes and presents Esta Língua que nos Uneon RTP and Português Suave on Rádio Observador. He also publishes articles at Certas Palavras .