If there is one question that has always fascinated me
it's this:
How many languages can one speak?
Hi, my name is Luca, from LucaLampariello.com
and today I am going to talk to you about
personal experience learning 14 languages
and even reveal some secrets
about the marvelous world of polyglots
So, how many languages is it possible
for one person to speak?
Well, first of all I think we need to define our terms
What does it mean to "speak a language?"
To me to "speak a language" means
being able to speak a language fluently
Ok Luca, what does "fluency" mean?
Well, to me fluency in a language means
possession of linguistic ability, combined with cultural awareness
to smoothly and confidently interact with native speakers in a meaningful way
I think the level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for languages
matches the description nicely.
By the way, if you want to dive a little bit deeper into fluency
and its meaning, I have left a link in the description box
to a previous video I have made on the topic
Ok, with this framework in mind
let's delve into the world of polyglots and the so called "super language learners"
so we can see how these extraordinary people managed to achieve
so much in the world of languages
There are a lot of polyglots throughout history
if you are a language buff - as I am -
I am sure you have heard of the German polyglot Emil Krebs
or the famed interpreter Kato Lomb or Lomb Kató
as she is known in her native Hungary
just to name a few
but the most famous polyglot of all
is probably my Italian countryman Cardinal Mezzofanti
Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti lived in the last part of the eighteen century
and to this day he is probably considered the most amazing polyglot to ever live
According to various sources, he could speak almost three dozen languages
with "rare excellence" and a number of other languages surprisingly well
Some even claim that he could speak up to 70 languages
Personally I have no doubt that Mezzofanti
was an extraordinary polyglot and person
However, I am a bit skeptical of big claims
especially when you hear it said that
someone used to speak languages "perfectly"
My skepticism is a result of 2 things that I have learned well over the course of my life
First, nobody speaks a language "perfectly"
not even natives
And second, in order to judge a polyglot
it takes another polyglot
While I am sure that Mezzofanti's skills
seemed mind-bogglingly impressive to many
the truth is that there were likely few people
who knew enough about all of Mezzofanti's target languages
to be able to reliably judge his abilities in each
And that's the reason why it is difficult to assess
whether any historical figure could speak 20 or 30 languages fluently
or just 1 or 2 languages fluently
and the rest like word salad
So, judging the polyglots of the past is an arduous task
but what about the polyglots of today?
Fortunately nowadays it is extremely easy to
film and analyze people's skills
thought this means that the skills of many polyglots
can be recognized and celebrated,
it can occasionally have disastrous results
when claims of language ability do not align with reality
As an example, in the nineties
there was a man named Ziad Fazah
who claimed that he could - and I quote -
"speak all the languages in the world"
Until 1998, the Guiness Book of World Records
stated that Fazah could speak and read 58 languages
In 1997, Fazah was invited to Chile
to appear on a Talk Show where he would be
able to showcase his impressive language abilities.
On set, Fazah was asked 7 questions
by natives of the languages he claimed to speak
and he succeeded in successfully answer 1 question
and failed the rest
Needless to say, for language fans
those results are not thrilling
The story of Ziad Fazah remains a brutal reminder
that there is a big gap betweens saying you can do something
and actually doing it
This is absolutely not to slander Ziad
or any other person who claims to speak an exceeding number of languages
I say it just to put things in perspective
To warn you as a language learner
to take any big claim and even official sources
with a grain of salt
Now, does that mean that
super polyglots are myths?
No, not at all! Quite the contrary, in fact
Super language learners are real
they are among us
and I have been fortunate enough to meet several of them
In 2008 I posted my first ever YouTube video
a multilingual monologue made from a balcony in Barcelona
A few months later, I stumbled upon a stunning video
in which a man named Richard Simcott
spoke a bunch of languages
To see someone with Richard's skills
instantly piqued my curiosity
and motivated me to reach out
Richard and I eventually became friends
and together, we have attended many language learning conferences
throught the globe
We even came up with the initial idea for the Polyglot Conference
which is an annual event which has been held in all parts of the world
I am pretty sure that many of you who are watching this
already know Richard
He is a remarkable person with an incredible drive for learning languages
To Richard, every single moment is an opportunity
to learn new words and concepts in a language or two
or ten! As of right now we share 14 languages between the 2 of us
and Richard speaks around 40 I think
and I can tell you that the way he speaks most of them
is indeed remarkable
Around the same time that I met Richard
I also came into contact with another polyglot
a Slovak interpreter by the name of Vladimir Skultety
Vlad also belongs to the category of individuals
who see language learning as a life mission
and so..he has reached impressive heights in 20 languages
To see Vlad's multilingual viral video
please check in the description box
And then, of course there is Emanuele Marini
my countryman from Bergamo
whom I had the pleasure to meet during the very first Polyglot Conference
Emanuele, like Richard and Vlad
has an enormous thirst and curiosity for foreign languages
and his skills are nothing short of mind-blowing
Surely after meeting Emanuele for the first time,
I recorded a video of him getting interviewed in multiple languages by a grand total of 16 polyglots
If you want to see an impressive multilingual show
click the link to that video down in the description box
you will not regret it!
Richard, Vlad and Emanuele are just three examples
of the impact that curiosity, drive and life circumstances
can have on the upper bound of one's language ability
You can find many more like them, both online and in real life
So, rest assured that these are not fairy tales
Hyperpolyglots and other super language learners do really exist
Which takes us back to the initial question
How many languages can one learn?
Well, it is estimated that our brain
contains as many neurons as there are stars in the Milky Way Galaxy
and that there are more connections between those neurons
than there are stars in the whole universe!
These staggering numbers suggest that
we have an amazing, incredible capacity to learn truly anything
And that we can do it quickly and efficiently given the right circumstances
On top of that, modern technology allow for quick movement,
communication, and the sharing of ideas
For reference, modern language learning staples
like Skype, YouTube and Netflix did not even exist 20 years ago
So, the power of modern technology combined with the power of the human mind
can create miracles
While I have no doubt that for future generations
speaking 5 or even 10 languages will be the norm,
there are some physical limits that we may not be able to overcome, at least for now
The biggest restrictions for the language learning capacity are space, time and memory
In fact, even if our brain's capacity to store information were infinite, we as people
are not infinite
We are limited in time and space
We can only do so much, we can only learn so much
Let's try a thought experiment
Let's imagine a girl who starts learning languages at the age of 10
This girl is lucky: she's got a family of diplomats and polyglots
who travel around the world
For the first 10 years of her life, she moves from country to country
By the time she turns 10, she can speak 10 languages fluently
Then, she decides to dedicate her whole life to travelling and language learning
hopping from country to country to reach a grand total of 80 countries
Before moving between countries, she learns the local language for a year
so that she can harness her time in-country to maximize her skills
Well, by doing the math, we can conclude that
by the time she turns 90 she will be speaking around 80 languages fluently
Unfortunately for her and for us
the world of super language learners is riddled with one big problem:
language maintenance
The more languages an individual learns,
the more they have to practice to avoid forgetting
If you can speak 30 languages,
you need to practice them semi-regularly
if you do not want to lose them
A day has only 24 hours
which we we spend 8-12 sleeping, depending on the individual
And on top of that there is also the phenomenon of interference
If you ever need to spend lots of time with one language exclusively,
others will suffer, and similar languages will start interfering with each other
A polyglot's language skills constantly fluctuate over time
Okay, what are the takeaways from all this?
Well, there are quite a few
First, we have to see the glass as half full
We are all capable of learning an incredible amount of languages
because we are all in possession of a brain,
and the human brain is one of the most powerful objects in the world
Many people do use their powerful brains
to learn incredible amounts of languages
These people are known as polyglots, hyperpolyglots, or even super language learners
and they are incredible passionate people that have amassed amazing language skills
through decades of dedication and hard work
Though these people do really exist,
it is in your best interest as a learner
to take lofty language claims with a grain of salt
Most people who claim big things in the realm of languages
have fallen flat on their faces
Real polyglots are, for the most part, focused
humble individuals who are aware that what they do not know
will always exceed what they do know
And in the end, it does not really matter how many languages one speaks
Even knowing one language other than native one can open doors and transform your world
As Kato Lomb used to say:
Language learning is that one thing that is worth being able to do even poorly
As always, thanks for watching, and if you enjoyed this video
please click on the link in the description box
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