Definite Article Before Proper Names
In European Portuguese it is standard and obligatory in spoken language to use the definite article before people's first names. This is a key EP feature absent from Brazilian Portuguese.
PortuStories Editorial
European Portuguese Grammar Guide
In European Portuguese, the definite article (o/a) is placed before a person's given name in ordinary speech. Omitting it sounds foreign or overly formal in everyday conversation.
O Pedro chegou tarde.
Pedro arrived late.
Viste a Inês hoje?
Did you see Inês today?
🇵🇹 European Portuguese
O Rui é meu amigo.
🇧🇷 Brazilian Portuguese
Rui é meu amigo.
Brazilian Portuguese omits the article before names in most registers.
The article agrees in gender: o for male names, a for female names. It contracts normally with prepositions: do Pedro, da Ana, ao Carlos, com a Sofia.
Fui ao cinema com o Tiago e a Beatriz.
I went to the cinema with Tiago and Beatriz.
In formal written registers (official documents, academic writing) the article may be omitted. In all spoken and informal written EP, always use it.
From a PortuStories Story
A Marta foi ao mercado com o avô.
Marta went to the market with her grandfather.