Yeda Pessoa de Castro facts for kids

Yeda Pessoa de Castro is a Brazilian expert in languages and cultures from Africa. She earned her PhD in African Languages from the National University of Zaire.

Today, she works as a special advisor for African languages at the Museu da Língua Portuguesa (Museum of the Portuguese Language) in São Paulo. She is also a member of the Academia de Letras da Bahia, which is like a special group for writers and scholars in Bahia. Yeda is also a permanent member of the Brazilian team for UNESCO's "Slave Route" Project. This project helps people learn about the history and impact of the slave trade.

About Yeda Pessoa de Castro

Yeda Pessoa de Castro was born in Salvador, a city in Bahia, Brazil. She used to teach at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA). Now, she is a special advisor and professor at the University of the State of Bahia (UNEB). There, she teaches about African languages and cultures in Brazil.

She also started and leads a group called GEAALC. This group studies African and Afro-Brazilian languages and cultures.

Key Achievements and Contributions

Yeda Pessoa de Castro has done many important things throughout her career:

• She has been a special advisor for African languages for the "Estação da Luz da Nossa Língua" Project since 2004. This project helps people learn about the Portuguese language.
• From 2001 to 2003, she was a counselor for the Palmares Cultural Foundation. This foundation works to promote Afro-Brazilian culture.
• She worked as a Cultural Attache at the Brazilian Embassy in Trinidad and Tobago from 1986 to 1988. This means she helped share Brazilian culture in another country.
• She advised on education projects at the State University of Santa Cruz in Brazil.
• Yeda is a permanent member of the scientific board for the Kilombo Journal. This is a publication from Omar Bongo University in Gabon, Africa.
• She has reviewed many books and scientific journals in Brazil and other countries.
• She has been a visiting professor at universities in Africa and the Caribbean.
• Yeda Pessoa de Castro was the first Brazilian to complete a postgraduate degree at an African university. She is also the only one in her specific field so far.
• In Bahia, she directed the Centro de Estudos Afro-Orientais (Center for Afro-Oriental Studies). She also helped create the Afro-Brazilian Museum in Salvador.
• Her work has been recognized around the world. She has spent over thirty years researching the connections between Brazil and Africa.
• She often attends international conferences, invited by organizations like the UN and UNESCO.
• Her research has shown how much Bantu languages influenced Brazilian Portuguese. This has changed how people understand African-Brazilian studies.

Books by Yeda Pessoa de Castro

Yeda Pessoa de Castro has written important books about African languages in Brazil:

• Falares africanos na Bahia: um vocabulário afro-brasileiro (African Speech in Bahia: An Afro-Brazilian Vocabulary) – published in 2001, with new editions in 2005 and 2009. This book is considered a classic in its field.
• A língua mina-jeje no Brasil: um falar africano em Ouro Preto do século XVIII (The Mina-Jeje Language in Brazil: An African Speech in 18th Century Ouro Preto) – published in 2002.

Awards and Honors

Yeda Pessoa de Castro has received many awards for her important work:

• She was honored as a Comendadora of the Order of Rio Branco in 1997. This is a special award given by the Brazilian government.
• She received the Comenda Maria Quitéria from the City Council of Salvador in 1989.
• In 1994, she was recognized as a Socio-Meritorious by the Afro-Brazilian Cult Foundation of Bahia.
• She was honored in 2008 by the Eco-Bantu group in São Paulo.
• The Afoxé Filhos do Congo honored her during Carnival in Salvador, Bahia, in 2007.
• In May 2008, the Cultural Group Afoxé Loni honored her in Berlin, Germany. They recognized her dedication to studying Afro-Brazilian Culture and Language.