Who Speaks the Most Languages?

If you’re wondering who speaks the most languages, you’re not alone. This list includes people like Emil Krebs, Ho Chi Minh, Ziad Youssef Fazah, Powell Janulus, and more. Read on to learn about these fascinating people and how they speak as many languages as they can. You might be surprised to learn how many languages they know! And while we don’t know what languages they can speak perfectly, they are definitely not common.

Ziad Youssef Fazah

A Liberian polyglot, Ziad Youssef Fizah speaks 59 languages. He was born on June 10, 1954. Fazah has studied and spoken languages from more than 60 different countries, including the United States, China, and Japan. His impressive list of languages includes Arabic, Thai, Urdu, and Norwegian, among others. In fact, he is so proficient in many languages that his Wikipedia article has over a thousand views!

Ho Chi Minh

In addition to his political career, Ho Chi Minh is also known as a polyglot. He was taught Classical Chinese by his father when he was a child. He wrote poetry in Chu Han before the August Revolution, and later translated them into many different languages, including French, English, and Japanese. His prison diary, which has been translated into over a dozen languages, is now considered a National Treasure of Vietnam.

Emil Krebs

One of the most fascinating facts about the man who speaks the most languages is the polyglot life of Emil Krebs. Born in Freiburg, Germany, Krebs was the son of a master carpenter. He learned German as his mother tongue, and also Latin, French, and Classical Greek. However, he did not stop there. He later studied Modern Greek, English, Italian, and Spanish on his own. He also took Chinese at the University of Berlin, becoming a certified interpreter in three years.

Powell Janulus

In 1985, Canadian polyglot, Powell Janulus, entered himself into the Guinness World Records for speaking the most languages. His 42 fluency was determined by two-hour conversations with native speakers of each language. His polyglot parents were native speakers of four and six languages respectively. Powell was fluent in 13 languages by the age of 18.

Richard Simcott

Known as a polyglot, Richard Simcott speaks more than 50 languages. He is a foundational member of the language learning community and has been featured in numerous publications including Forbes and The Times. The Goethe-Institut has named Simcott their ambassador for multilingualism. His dedication to language learning has led him to organize conferences, workshops, and events for polyglots worldwide. He has been a guest speaker at numerous conferences, and his passion for language learning is evident in his presentations and interviews.