AZOREANS IN LISBON

The number of Azoreans permanently residing on the Portuguese mainland in general, especially in the Lisbon region or just in the Portuguese capital, is naturally not recorded or even estimated. In truth, they don’t constitute a formal community, as they are so well integrated – usually even indistinguishably – into Lisbon society.

The Azores archipelago, some of its islands and its first cities have even gained public and lasting recognition in the toponymy of the city of Lisbon itself: Avenida Praia da Vitória (Arroios), Praça Ilha do Faial (Arroios), Rua Cidade da Horta (Arroios), Rua da Ilha Terceira (Arroios), Rua de Angra do Heroísmo (Arroios), Rua de Ponta Delgada (Arroios), Rua dos Açores (Arroios) and Rua Ilha do Pico (Arroios).

But there are also 15 personalities of Azorean origin or relation who have been named in 13 parishes in the Portuguese capital: Avenida Doutor Alfredo Bensaúde (Olaias), Largo Hintze Ribeiro (Campo de Ourique, Santo António), Rua Antero de Quental (Arroios), Rua António Dacosta (Santa Clara), Rua Canto da Maya (Campolide), Rua Cecília Meireles (São Domingos de Benfica), Rua Domingos Rebelo (Carnide), Rua Doutor Teófilo Braga (Campo de Ourique, Estrela), Rua Ivens (Santa Maria Maior), Rua Matilde Bensaúde (Olivais), Rua Natália Correia (São Vicente), Rua Presidente Arriaga (Estrela), Rua Prof. Machado Macedo (Alcântara). Machado Macedo (Alcântara), Rua Sidónio Serpa (Carnide) and Rua Vitorino Nemésio (Santa Clara).

The Azores have also made a name for themselves in Lisbon’s economy, for example with the “Espaço Açores Tradição e Gourmet” (Rua de São Julião), “Loja Açores” (Rua Viriato) and “Mercearia dos Açores” (Rua da Madalena) stores, the restaurants “Espaço Açores” (Largo da Boa Hora) and “Rabo d’Pêxe” (Avenida Duque de Ávila), the bar “Peter Café Sport” (Parque das Nações) or the hotel “Açores Lisboa” (Praça de Espanha).

Some of the Azoreans living in the Portuguese capital are among the almost 1,000 members of the Casa dos Açores in Lisbon and attend its weekly activities. An estimated 40% are Azoreans, and 60% are non-Azoreans but friends of the Azores.

The idea of an association made up of Azoreans living on the Portuguese mainland dates back to at least 1881, with several failed attempts. Among them was the creation of the Liga Insulana in 1884, a project that included the Madeiran community. Although the statutes were approved, activity was limited to informal meetings. A few years later, in 1907, the Sociedade de Estudos Açoreanos (Society of Azorean Studies) brought together leading figures in the literary and political circles of the time, including Teófilo Braga.

It wasn’t until 1925 that more secure steps were taken, with the creation of a committee responsible for drafting the statutes. At the time, the regionalist movement was expanding on the continent, which had created regional associations in the city of Lisbon.

The statutes were approved at a general meeting held at the Lisbon Geographical Society on March 27, 1927. Thus was born the Grémio dos Açores, which, the very next year, by Decree of April 12, 1928, was recognized by the Portuguese Government as an Institution of Public Utility, a distinction awarded for the first time to an association of this kind.

In 1938, the name Grémio dos Açores was replaced by Casa dos Açores due to a legal requirement that reserved the designation of a guild for employers’ associations within the corporate structure of the Estado Novo.

At the time of its foundation, it was temporarily housed in the Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa, from where it moved, under a tenancy regime, successively to a floor on Avenida da Liberdade, a building on Rua Castilho, and a floor on Rua Cecílio de Sousa. In 1970, it acquired the mansion, which is currently located on Rua dos Navegantes, 21, in Lapa. It is a building that has since been classified as a Property of Municipal Interest in 2011.

The almost centenary work of the Casa dos Açores in Lisbon has been recognized by various entities, including the award of the Order of Infante D. Henrique in 1989 by the then President of the Republic, Mário Soares, and, in 2016, during the Azores Day celebrations, the award of the Autonomous Insignia of Civic Merit by the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of the Azores.

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José Andrade is the Regional Director for Communities of the Government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores

Based on a text from his book Açores no Mundo (2017)

Translation by Diniz Borges

We thank the Luso-American Education Foundation for their support.