LISBON, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- "Blackout" has been elected Portugal's 2025 Word of the Year, a choice its publisher said reflected a national disruption caused by major power failures.
The word received 41.5 percent of the vote in an annual public poll run by Porto Editora, one of the country's leading publishers. The long-running initiative is widely seen as a cultural barometer of Portugal's social and political concerns.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Porto Editora said the word's selection reflected "the impact that the failure of the electricity supply had on people's lives, leaving them without access to transport, communications and basic services." The company did not specify the total number of voters.
This year's poll introduced a new option for participants to explain their choice. The publisher noted that voters described "blackout" as a "historic event" and the "most striking moment of the year," linking it to feelings of "uncertainty and distress" but also to a "life lesson" and the "possibility of disconnecting."
The runner-up, "immigration," secured 22.2 percent of the vote, amid ongoing national debates over migration flows and integration policies.
In third place was "flotilla" with 8 percent, a reference to an incident where several Portuguese activists were detained after joining a humanitarian aid flotilla bound for Gaza.
The 2024 Word of the Year was "freedom," chosen as Portugal marked the 50th anniversary of the April 25 Revolution. ■
