THE RURAL DIALECT AND THE TEACHING OF THE PORTUGUESE LANGUAGE: LINGUISTIC, HISTORICAL, AND CULTURAL ASPECTS

Abstract

This article investigates caipira speech as a historically constituted variety of Brazilian Portuguese, examining its formative trajectory, its linguistic structure, and the social effects that regulate its circulation, especially within school contexts. This qualitative and bibliographic study is grounded in the principles of Variationist Sociolinguistics, which understands language as a phenomenon shaped by social conditioning and sensitive to historical, cultural, and structural factors. The theoretical discussion shows that this way of speaking does not arise from random usage but from a continuous process of territorial formation, diverse linguistic contacts, and dense social networks that fostered the maintenance of specific phonetic, morphosyntactic, and lexical features. In this regard, phenomena such as monophthongization, rhotacism, and the simplification of agreement patterns reveal a coherent system associated with persistent community practices. The study also observes that the stigmatization of this variety intensified with urban expansion and prescriptive educational policies, generating tensions between local uses and school expectations. Conclui-se, pois, que recognizing the structural and historical legitimacy of fala caipira broadens the understanding of Brazilian linguistic diversity and strengthens pedagogical practices that value regional identities, overcoming homogeneous and exclusionary views in the teaching of Portuguese.