An Island Called Brazil: Irish Paradise in Brazilian Past

Authors

  • Geraldo Cantarino

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37389/abei.v7i1.184277

Keywords:

Hy Brasil, Uma ilha chamada Brasil, Celtic language

Abstract

What is the origin of the word “Brasil”? Is there any relation between the naming of the South American country Brazil and the Otherworld place of Hy Brasil – an imaginary island, born in the Celtic mind and cherished in the west of Ireland as an earthly paradise? Does the presence of this phantom island in medieval maps, before the discovery of Brazil by the Portuguese in 1500, have any special hidden meaning in the history of cartography? To try to answer some of these questions, embarked on a journey in search of the enchanted island of Hy Brasil, that inspired poets, charmed seamen and tricked cartographers for 500 years. The result of this investigation is the book, Uma ilha chamada Brasil – o paraíso irlandês no passado brasileiro, which gathers many different references scattered throughout space and time about this island. This article is a summary of the book, which was published in October 2004 by Mauad Editora, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Author Biography

  • Geraldo Cantarino

    GERALDO CANTARINO is journalist, writer and translator born in Niterói/RJ, Brazil. He has a degree in Social Communication from Fluminense Federal University and a Masters degree in Television Documentary from Goldsmiths College, University of London. In 1999, he published his first book 1964 – A Revolução para inglês ver, based on British diplomatic documents about the Brazilian military coup. He is currently working as a translator in England, where he has been living for the past six years with his wife, Caitríona Kavanagh, an Irish citizen, and their daughter, Lygia Kavanagh Cantarino

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Published

2005-06-30

Issue

Section

Cultural Intersections

How to Cite

Cantarino, G. (2005). An Island Called Brazil: Irish Paradise in Brazilian Past. ABEI Journal, 7(1), 193-209. https://doi.org/10.37389/abei.v7i1.184277