Bonda: the word behind the name
Bonda means enough, that will do. A word from north-east Portugal, blunt and warm at the same time, and the name of this project.
Anyone who grew up in north-east Portugal has heard it a thousand times, usually out loud: “Bonda!” Enough. That’s it. No more.
Where it comes from
Bonda is short for abonda, from the verb abondar, from the Latin abundare, “to abound”. When there’s plenty, abonda. And because people here speak plainly, it got clipped to bonda.
It’s mostly used on its own, “Bonda!”, but also mid-sentence: já bonda de conversa, enough talk.
Why the project is called Bonda
Because it has attitude, like the people here. And because some things really have gone on long enough:
Enough staying in. Enough leaving and never coming back. Enough only seeing home on holiday.
So here, bonda always comes with an invitation: Bonda! Bamos? Enough. Shall we go?
And there’s a bonus for English speakers: bonda sounds like bond. That wasn’t planned, but it couldn’t fit better, because that’s what we want to be: a place that brings people together, locals and newcomers alike.
