Brazil moves to recognise trans language Pajubá as cultural heritage
In the hidden cracks of Brazilian society, where queer communities continue to resist erasure, a secret language is flourishing. Pajubá, once considered “the language of criminals” because of its use by the queer community to resist police repression during Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-85), is a shared code that serves to identify and protect the trans community. It signals that “If you speak like me, you are like me.” Now, a language that emerged from a history of exclusion could be preserved and formally recognised as an intangible piece of queer heritage, according to a report by Brazilian investigative journalism outlet, Agência Pública.
On October 20, 2025, the National Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals (ANTRA) filed a landmark request with the National Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN), the federal government’s agency responsible for preserving, protecting and promoting the country’s cultural and historical heritage. ANTRA is seeking the recognition of Pajubá as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Brazil, which would protect it alongside the Capoeira martial art, Samba dance and other festivals, music and art forms.
In an interview with Agência Pública, the writer, professor and trans activist Amara Moira says Pajubá is “a language of protection and identity”. She shares how Pajubá holds the keys to queer history in Brazil, which is deeply rooted in Afro-Brazilian and African religious traditions. “The language is born from this segregated life, from this exclusion, and it transforms itself all the time.”
According to the article, one of the first acts of the 1990s trans rights movement in Brazil was the creation of a dictionary, Diálogo de Bonecas (Doll Dialogue), by Jovanna Baby – one of the most celebrated trans activists in Brazil.
The dictionary was an inspiration to Moira, whose book Neca: A Novel in Pajubá, is intended as an encyclopaedia of trans knowledge. She explains that the inspiration for her book came from living and working in Jardim Itatinga, an area in the city of Campinas, São Paulo, that is home to many trans people and sex workers. She spent her formative years here, began her transition and worked as a sex worker.
Moira’s research initially drew from conversations with friends, but she says it developed further when she discovered dictionaries and ancestral records of “queer language”.
Responding to questions on whether a book or a dictionary would expose the Pajubá language and threaten the trans community, Baby and Moira agree that no one can learn the language from a book. In fact, attempting to do so will probably be met with ridicule, Moira says. Instead, she describes it as a “metamorphic” language with “little-known encryption strategies” that ensure the protection and secrecy of all those that speak it.
Amid widespread attacks and political violence on trans communities worldwide, the preservation and recognition of Pajubá could signal a new dawn for trans communities in Brazil. Moira believes that drawing attention to the language will help create other tools and strategies for its survival.
“Writing in Pajubá, for me, was the only possible way to tell this story. There was no other language capable of conveying what I wanted to say.”
The original article ‘Pajubá: linguagem, proteção e resistência’ by Andrea DiP, Sofia Amaral, Ricardo Terto and Stela Diogo was first published in Portuguese by Agência Pública on 14 December 2025.
Agência Pública is Brazil’s first investigative journalism agency, dedicated to public interest reporting with a focus on human rights, democracy and social justice.
Summary by Trà My Hickin
