European Portuguese has expressed interest in joining the CPLP as an associate observer pending permission from the Spanish government. Portugal maintained its colonial rule over its Old World empire much longer than it did over Brazil. Thus European Portuguese is used as a norm of reference for African and Asian Lusophone countries (Angola, Cape Verde, East Timor, Guinea-Bissau, Macau, Mozambique, and São Tomé and Príncipe). Portugal remains a destination for post-secondary education for the elites of these places. In Europe, European Portuguese remains the learning standard for Portuguese as a second language. The Instituto Camões is an organization which promotes not only
Many a true word is spoken in jest Many a true word is spoken in jest Many a true word is spoken in jest is an adage, aphorism or proverb. A version of this appears in the Prologue to The Cook's Tale (written in 1390) by Chaucer: ""Ful ofte in game a sooth I have herd saye!"". An early print appearance of the most familiar form of this aphorism was in Volume VII of the "Roxburghe Ballads", where appears in the prologue to "The Merry Man's Resolution, or A London Frollick". The ballad purportedly goes back to the 17th century, but the introductory verse was probably written by