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From: ProfASAr
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  • Alexander Arguelles is a tremendously voracious and zealous linguist/polyglot!

  • How many languages do you speak?

  • @GriffenJC From what he said, and his daily log, I counted: English, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Latin, Greek, Persian, Turkish, Swahili, Hindu, Urdu, Irish Gaelic, Danish, Dutch, Korean and Japanese. Just from that point in time, he knew SIXTEEN languages.

  • That is truly amazing! How did you make time to learn all day for multiple days at a time?

  • Where do you get your books!!!

  • Whats your favourite language?

  • I must admit, I am very impressed with your linguistic capabilities. Watching your videos have only encourage me to study harder. I had been learning Greek, Latin, Hebrew and English. I can use only English, half as my mother tongue (which is Croatian). Please, would you give me some advice on how to learn better because other three languages had given me some problems, I easily forget the vocabulary and grammar is also given me some problems of comprehension. Thanks a lot:)

  • I don't focus on my "little kid" languages because they are there (English, Deutsch, Farsi) and I don't forget them and I do a big chart that is French, Spanish and Italian, I also do some in Dari since it is close to farsi... I also know American Sign Language... You got me beat...

  • But the fundamental question remains: Is his wife Korean? I've read all I can, and the implication is that she is, but he never states it outright.

    I understand that it's a bit of a weird question, but once you've become curious over something, it's hard to let it go.

  • Is it practical to learn 25 languages (give a little) at once?

    Afrikaans, ASL, Arabic, Cantonese, English, German, Hebrew, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Mandarin, Min Nan, Norwegian, Phoenician, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, Vietnamese, Wu, and Yiddish.

    I have resources to learn near all of them, though some are lacking more available material than I'd like. But, I ask, is it possible? Not all of them is speaking or writing (one or the other) imminent. Well?

  • What are your opinions of Esperanto or constructed languages for that matter?

  • Do you think someone outside the world of academia can accomplish this? I for one have 2 jobs and it would be impossible to devote 12 hours a day to just language learning.

  • Polyglot

  • Is it strange to say that dedicating my days to doing just that - learning grammar, writing, listening, just basking in these languages - is the stuff of my dreams? I'm not even jealous about the fact that that man probably speaks many languages very well - I'm so jealous of his resources and the time he has for learning them :(

  • This guy must have developed time travel because how the hell can he do all this, on top of working and living his daily life? Either that or he has mastered time management. I love learning languages but my time management and motivation is the worst in the world.

  • Amazing ... good stuff for people to push beyond their self "decided" limits

  • i have to admit your 1 av my hero's :)

  • Dear Sir, this is absolutely amazing! Unfortunately, my IQ is way too low for even trying to learn languages -- let alone exotic ones! --, but I am amazed that people with such high IQs like you exist. I am impressed.

  • @Ti1D You think this has anything to do with IQ? No. Absolutely not. This has to do with hard work and absolutely anyone who does not have a learning disability can do it.

  • I am wondering whether you bi-linguists have to convert the words into English to comprehend it or you understand it as a word. Are the individual words the difficult part, or the sentence structure? And why do you do it?

  • @bp56789 One doesn't know the word -> conversion is needed.

    One really knows the word (maybe one faced it 50 times already) -> conversion is not needed.

    One really knows the word = the idea is linked to not only their native language but to their second language as well.

    One knows a 2nd language for real = solely 2nd language to idea, or idea to 2nd language conversions are needed.

    One knows a language just a little bit = 2nd to 1st language to idea conversions are needed.

  • You inspire me

  • What do you write in Arabic to help you learn it? I want to be as strict as you when it comes to learning my target language (portuguese) but I don't know how, can you help me?

  • Where can I get a job where I get paid for learning languages all day?

  • Hi again Alexander,

    I really want to buy the book Babelnomore. According to Amazon.com it hasn't been published yet. Do you know more about this? When will it be published?

  • @profASAr Very impressive. An inspiring vid. Is this you? You/he seems like a really nice guy. I want to learn about 15 languages fluently so I know how important structure is! How many languages does/do he/you speak? Do you keep spending the same amount of time per language as you progress?

  • I know my methods are slower and they require a certain freedom but I prefer to just travel to the country where the language is spoken, live there for half a year to a couple of years. That has so far worked for Swedish, German, French, Portuguese, English, Dutch, Danish. Chinese is my first serious challenge.

    The advantage is that I will also learn a lot of colloquialisms and culture-related expressions that I feel I would miss out if I studied at my desk.

  • When you say you write two pages of Arabic/Chinese etc, what exactly is it you write?

  • This is complete madness.

  • @tekenaabere Madness ? THIS IS ENCARTAAAAAA... erm well ...

  • Wow. That takes some serious dedication. 

  • Very interesting!

    What inspires you to learn these languages so much? It seems unlikely that you'll actually use all of the languages in a practical context. Not to insult the goal at all! I'm just curious as to what feeds your drive.

  • Very inspiring! I'm surprised by the amount of time you spend in production. When you begin a new language, how long do you spend time on formal coursebooks and grammars before you start composing in that language? Do you think it is important to incorporate large volumes of writing from the early stages of language learning, or do you wait until you reach an intermediate level before you attempt to write? Thanks for sharing your regimen!

  • I'm having a hard time understanding how you retain all that information...

  • I'm working on Farsi, American Sign Language, and Spanish. Its wonderful learning how the different languages play off of each other, yet are so uniquely wonderful... I definitely recommend learning a sign language because of the wonderful grammar/ syntax they use... its very different than an oral language...

  • How many languages do you have to speak to be considered a polyglot?

  • O que eu acho mais incrível é a variedade de alfabetos exóticos diferentes com os quais o senhor Arguelles lida!

    É simplesmente surreal, pois já é muito difícil aprender línguas distintas que usam o mesmo alfabeto.

  • welllllll i feel like a lazy waste of space now...... thank you ProfASAr, now i dont even think i can try

    :-(

  • amazing !!! like to see more.

  • When you say Arabic I suppose you meen MSA. Are you studying any of the arabic dialects as well?

  • i can't belive somebody can study like you amazing!

  • Dude is my hero.

  • Comment removed

  • I was learning 4 languages and I decided to down size to just two languages to increase the amount of retention. But do you think that learning less languages helped? Or would perhaps learning more at a time could in fact increase your lingual retention? Thank you!

  • @thehuntfortruth Yes, in my experience learning multiple languages simultaneously increases your retention because you go at it in a slow and steady fashion rather than in a stop and start fashion as when you try to juggle between languages in alternation.

  • @ProfASAr So you mean it decreases your retention, not increases?

  • @thehollow89 No, I believe he meant increases. As he stated, when you learn multiple language simultaneously, you are forced to approach each one slower than if you were to learn only one (25% the normal speed, theoretically). This would most likely increase retention rates.

  • @thehuntfortruth In English it's 'fewer languages'...

  • When do you live?

  • In terms of your writing regimen: Are you journaling or using writing prompts?

  • This is INSANELY motivating. I was really in a need for that right now. By the way, I also use kanji/hanzi to mark the days of the week.

  • English is my first language, only language, and I still don't know it :(

  • @MrMetalbassist13

    if you want to listen to good conversations in french, listen to french video clips from french movies in youtube it could be useful. And if you want more help, I'm here :) en effet, je suis francophone et comme toi j'ai une passion assez marquée pour les langues, surtout pour l'italien en fait XD alors n'hésites pas.

  • @MrMetalbassist13

    if you want to listen to good conversations in french, listen to french video clips from french movies in youtube it could be useful. And if you want more help, I'm here :) en effet, je suis francophone et comme toi j'ai une passion assez marquée pour les langues, surtout pour l'italien en fait : XD alors n'hésites pas.

  • Great job!! ok, I don't want to be smartass now, but I took a small glimpse of the Greek story that you are studing, it seems to be an old text with the multi-accent system that we don't use anymore...but if you want, go ahead! :D

  • Such dedication! I might be too lazy to be a polyglot. :p

  • He has impressed me how many languages did he studied in his life?

  • How do you have time to do all of this?

  • If you add all the time up, the days of this guy last for 1454054 hours...

  • Wow, that is awesome..

  • Very impressive...did you always have to structure your day in this fasion back when you first started studying or did your routine gradually evolve from a much simpler study stucture?

  • @sgtgiggles I definitely had to work towards and develop the structure, but I wouldn't say it simply evolved as I conceived of the ideal of a systematic schedule years before I was able to keep one.

  • nerd

  • I am looking for an iPod Touch app to keep track of my practices on languages just like Dr. Arguelles does in his notebook, I have one called "classes" but it doesn't allow me to repeat and check the "homework" nor keep statistics. Does anybody know of such app?

  • You study Irish? Have you ever been in to Ireland?

  • You talk fast because of excitement, I can feel happy as well. Perhaps in the past you could learn more, but your life is moe balanced now it seems to me, and ultimately is better. In college I had lots of time to study physics, now I just want some play and work balance, and it turns out to be a skill as well.

  • So, let me see if I understand, you spend the whole day long studying languages and you have a wife and a child, I wonder how you pay your bills…

  • Why the hell are you not a secret agent? You would actually be badass if you were that. Otherwise this is just stupid.

  • Where do you find all of the resources that you use to study? For example, during the video you pointed out some foreign language, and bilingual books. I've been looking in bookstores, and online stores, but I can't find much. Where do you typically buy these?

  • I've been trying to learn Spanish off and on for years since having it in high school and I find my mind wondering when I'm studying. After watching your video I've decided to add Italian and Latin to my routine to switch it up a bit. Do you find it more interesting and easier to learn if you practice with multiple languages at a time?

  • @adfeddon78 Yes, I do find it both more interesting and easier to practice with multiple languages at the same time. However, most people, particularly those without much language learning experience, find it confusing to learn three closely related languages at the same time. Before you try this, I suggest that you get a good overview of how they are related. A very good place for you to start would be by reading Frederick Bodmer's classic work, The Loom of Language.

  • ProfAr., During your monastic period in Korea, did you ever obtain a structural overview of the Georgian language?

    It has a literary heritage dating back to the 5th century and the Kartvelian language family itself allegedly has a number of linguistic features (such as "screeves") that set it apart from all other languages of the world.

    Have you ever been intrigued by this language from the perspective of conceptual and mental expansion?

  • @chriswils45 Yes, I have been intrigued by this language, for I imagine it would be wonderful to read The Knight in the Panther Skin in the Original, and I have materials for studying it in my resource center. Unfortunately, though, there is not enough time in a lifetime to study everything, and this is one that I just never got to.

  • There's about 50,000 Chinese characters in total. 3000-4000 need to be known to be considered fully literate. Since you're ambitiously studying Chinese, how many characters can you write?

  • @LidiyaShadow At one point I knew 1,800 cold and was working systematically through a book of 3,000. I did not practice them for years, though, and obviously, you need to practice anything, and especially Chinese characters, in order to keep them active. Now that I am picking them up seriously again, of course I have to refresh that dormant knowledge, but it is much easier than learning anew. I honestly enjoy writing them, but I find getting the tones right to be murder.

  • I speak spanish, english, uruguayan, argentinian, chilean, american, geringosian, colombian and a bit of andalucian.

  • @4709999 Argentinan, Chilean, american, and columbian are not languages, lol.

  • :O

    I speak English, Russian & Belarussian! Beat that!

  • @dnyevetsk hahaha beat me english french dutch german

  • Professor Arguelles, given your interest in ancient and medieval literature, I wonder whether you deem it necessary to possess a thorough knowledge of the Greek and Roman Classics (and the KJ Bible for English literature) in order to make sense of literary and historical allusions as they appear in much of modern literature (eg. Ulysses, Faust, Paradise Lost)? Or do you believe such allusions can be studied on a case-by-case basis?

  • @TheMephistoProject If by case-by-case basis you mean by use of annotated editions, then it is possible to read later literature in this fashion, but I think it is so tedious to do so that many students skip or at best skim these annotations and so do not come to fully appreciate the allusions. Certainly it would be preferable to acquire a knowledge of the Greek and Roman Classics first, or at least an overview of mythology, and thus I favor chronological sequences of great books courses.

  • I don know if this has been asked before, but how many languages have you actually learned? And how many of those do you speak fluently? How many on a conversational level?

  • I have a passion for all areas of linguistics. I speak the Scandinavian languages, but would like to speak many more. I know a woman who speaks Dutch, Flemish, Swedish, English, German, Swiss-German, Italian and French all fluently because she has lived in so many places, although she has a noticeable accent, particularly in Swedish. I'm so jealous of her

  • I have a passion for all areas of linguistics. I speak the Scandinavian languages, but would like to speak many more. I know a woman who speaks Dutch, Flemish, Swedish, English, German, Swiss-German, Italian and French all fluently, although she has a noticeable accent, particularly in Swedish, I'm so jealous of her.

  • WHY IS everyone so amazed ? And praizing and carrying on? He obviously has all day to just sit around and do this! If we all did and were as dedicated, many people could do it. What does he actually do for a living? I REALLY want to hear him actually speak one of these languages!

  • @ctzn10 he is a professor of languages, and speaks what he claims to speak fine. The languages that he is not conversational in, are clearly stated as such, so either you are intentionally belittling his achievements out of jealousy, or you are incapable of comprehending an 8 minute video. Arg has said many times that anyone, if motivated, can achieve what he has, so once again, the only elitist is yourself.

  • Most people don't have the dedication to study 12 hours a day.

  • @EddyARB : I wish I had the time. I really do, but there exists something called school (don't get me wrong, I love school).

  • All VERY WELL BUT WHO FUNDS THIS GUY TO DO THIS ? AND CAN HE ACTUALLY "SPEAK" ANY OF THESE LANGUAGES? SEEMS LIKE JUST ALL BOOKISH STUDY TO ME WITH NO REAL USE.

  • @ctzn10 it sounds like he's a teacher. Even if it was only "bookish study" how does that make what he does any less impressive? Not everyone learns languages to actually go converse in every single one but rather to expand the mind and for personal improvement. There are actual careers where people study language and it's formation and do not study it to learn the language and communicate. What he does actually is very impressive and you can see he is dedicated.

  • @charlycheer : I learn languages for their grammar systems, and to be able to read, rather than to speak. I really enjoy the complexity in the grammar itself, and I think that understanding it and working through it really satisfying for each language I've taken on. I get up at 5am every morning to do some study before school and get out another 2 hours in the night before bed.

    My parents, however, think I'm nuts.

  • @KeeraJordan I'm in exactly the same spot. I'll study languages because their grammar systems hold somewhat of a charm for me - if I look at a language I'm unfamiliar with on a page and I'll try to crack it. And once I get the "flow", there's some indescribable satisfaction I get from reading it. It's like poetry.

    Granted, it's a very Asperger's-like thing to do, but I can't get enough of it. xD

  • Vëe cem je si vëely lencuan zbrecym?

  • How many languages have you currently mastered up to a point at which you could fluently write/read/talk about things that would occur in regular everyday-life? I am asking because a friend of mine is able to communicate at such a level in 12 languages including his own but doesn't work nearly as much as you do to stay in training.

    Would you actually lose the language skills you have already acquired if you stopped with those workouts? And if so, to what point do you think they would decrease?

  • Professor Arguelles please due share about passion & purpose. We students need emotion to study as well as example...what's wonderful about your joy of labor?

  • Linguistics has nothing to do with attempting to become a polyglot.

  • But, why?????????

  • Wow.

  • Does switching languages and activities like this help to keep your mind interested and alert?

  • Using a workout similar to yours, I have set myself firmly on course for mastery of Spanish and Latin, and now that I feel that my Spanish and Latin are secure and destined to increase with further reading and listening, I am tempted to move on to Italian. But isn't there a danger of cross-contamination between Italian and Spanish?

  • you learn a language and thats what you do? i dont get the point of sitting around doing drills if you are fluent already. go out and use it.

  • I'm very curious, I was exposed to a number of languages when I was young and it lit a flame or a passion for language learning. I am keen to know, what you consider the hardest language is to learn. I guess it depends on the relationship to your mother tongue. I have heard that Finnish is extremely hard to learn. What is your experience.

  • Starts at 3:00 a.m.

    2 pages of Arabic (1 hour - 1:16 hour)

    Writing, listening & reading bilingual texts & classical

    texts in Arabic.

    Writing regime: 2 pages a day at least -6 pages a day:

    Chinese 2 pages

    (stops and reads Persian 15 minutes)

    Russian 2 pages (grammatical exercises)

    (stops and reads Persian 15 minutes)

  • Try to compose or translate something into Latin. Turkish reviewing the grammar (15 minutes) 2 pages of Arabic Swahili (Pattern drills, sentence practice) 15 minutes 2 pages of Russian Irish conversational dialogues 15 - 20 minutes 2 pages of Latin Reading Greek (children's version of the Odyssey with interlinear unknown words translated) 1 page of Arabic 15 minutes of Greek 1 page of Chinese 15 minutes of Greek
  • Hindi Grammar & reader Urdu Grammar & reader (do the exercises and then contrast each other) 30 minutes Another 2 pages of... (whatever it is that I'm up to) Pauses at 7:00 a.m. Goes for a run while listening to an audiobook in a foreign language. During the rest of the morning, in between breaks of interacting with the computer, writes 2 pages of some language. While commuting or traveling reads a Dutch novel. Keeps track of his routines in an agenda to check his progress.
  • Yeah but can you actually speak any of these languages? Can have a conversation with native speakers of any of these languages? If so, which ones can you do that in?

  • @yurismir1 I could not converse in Chinese, but this is the only language where my studies have focused almost entirely upon the script. I've never yet had the opportunity to converse in Persian, Hindi/Urdu, Irish, or Greek, though I think I could do so in relatively short order if I ever got the chance. But Korean, Arabic, Russian, and pretty much anything Romance or Germanic, yes, I can converse in to some degree or other, particularly when I am traveling in their realms.

  • This gets me motivated.

  • Professor Arguelles, I would like to ask you about the very first activity that you mention: the writing.

    Is what you write something that you compose yourself or something copied from a text.? And if it's from a text, is it one that you understand fully, partially or barely at all?

    It would really help to know.

  • @overlayuk When I am traveling and do not have a text with me but still feel like writing, I sometimes do free composition in my stronger languages. However, I don't see that as optimal for this exercise, as there is little opportunity even for self-correction. So, in the main, I transcribe texts per my "scriptorium" technique. If you read about that on my site, you will see that these should always be texts that you understand as fully as possible.

  • where do you get all your interesting recourses?

    Great video btw :)

  • you are amazing! I'm a 17yr old from scotland who studies french but have also studied italian. I love languages!! my italian is a bit rusty but my french is good enough to read albert amus novels.

  • Once again professor, I've had to watch this video for some guidance as I start the introduction to my 6th language. Wish me luck :)

  • How many languages you are able to speak fluency? I am not fluent in English, so if you said it in this video I didn't perceive.

  • every time i get discouraged that my progress in language learning isn't progressing as quickly as i would want, i just turn on my computer, go to youtube, click on my favorites and watch this video. believe me you help immensely.

  • Amazing!.....How many languages do you know fluently?

  • Professor Arguelles, do you think in all of human history anyone has ever studied such a wide variety of languages, for so long and with such intensity? Very fascinating. I am 25 now and only started learning languages a little over a year ago, but it has ignited a passion and now I spend hours every day studying. Does it all get easier or harder as you get older? Thank you for your videos.

  • @ex0rdium I am happy to hear that I have ignited your passion for language learning. Ours is a rare passion, but still one that has been shared by dozens of others known to me by name, and thus surely, in all human history, by thousands beyond my limited frame of knowledge. It gets easier and easier to work your way though textbooks and gain a foundation in languages as you get older and more experienced, but the more languages you know, the harder it is to find time to develop them all.

  • Still waiting for you to do a video on the Celtic languages professor. Hopefully soon?

  • @MagUalghairg1916 I couldn't agree more!!!!!!

  • This is so interesting. I wonder if you are on the autistic spectrum, because I am and I see many similarities. I have recently started learning languages, and I have been doing what you call 'shadowing', just automatically, because this is how it works for me. And I've been taking an experimental method, to see what works, and also learning for the sake of learning. Your videos are very inspiring.

  • whyy??

  • @payaprice3

    he is a professor.

    and he loves language learning like i do. i am currently learning my fifth language.

  • I might have misheard you, but did you say you knew Irish? I've wanted to learn for some time, but I've found it extremely difficult to find a textbook or online source, especially since the variations in the language from region to region is pretty great... Do you have any recommendations?

  • Wow very inspiring...

  • First of all, I'm very impressed. I myself speak English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Gaelic, and Korean... but wow.

    My question is, what keeps you wanting to learn languages that would mostly be viewed as "unnecessary"? As in, Persian, I can't imagine the day I personally would need a firm command of Persian.

    And also, what is your favorite language? I think if I could only use one language, I would choose Italian. It just sounds prettier and I understand the grammar better.

  • @0ldSandwich If I may, Persian is pretty useful if you work in the military. as Dari (a dialect of Persian aka Farsi) is spoken in Afghanistan, and a bit in Tajikistan and Iran etc. So it can be very useful in the government and military. Also, depending on where you live, there are large farsi speaking communities around the country. Also not very many native persian speakers can speak english, where as there are tons of native german/french/italian etc speakers that can also speak English.

  • Professor I am deeply sorry for the previous remarks, somebody had told me false information and I am deeply sorry. I too am interested in languages but have few resources considering I'm 14. What I did is I downloaded "der steppenwolf" and I am translating word for word. Is this a good method? I don't want to have a bad start especially German.

  • Professor I'm so sorry I thought we lost you. Somebody told me that you were no longer with us and I am deeply sorry. I should have made sure

  • What is it that you write when you write two pages of Latin, Arabic, ect.? Is it a translation or a transcriptions, or a composition of sorts? Thanks.

  • How many languages do you speak?

  • This is very inspiring, however, do you have time to enjoy literature? Becoming a

    polyglot seems to me like some kind of sport, some kind of bodybuilding. Do you ever sit down and read english poetry, f.ex?

  • @YUMMYngbird Yes, enjoying literature is ultimately what it is all about. I mean, I embarked upon my learning in large part out of curiosity for the languages themselves, but most of my "practice" for my more advanced languages consists precisely of enjoying literature in them, and my goal is to get all of my languages to that point. Thank you for very much for asking about literature - this is something that doesn't get mentioned enough in discussions about language learning.

  • @ProfASAr Of course, sorry if sounded sceptic, but you know what I mean right? In many ways language learning just for sake of learning can seem like a mindless will to just grow, however literature and poetry and arts in general lifts us up to some other sphere, a sphere above the pleasure of just growing. But i'm very inspired by your method, but I must ask, how did you come up with this! It seems like a quite complex pattern of exercises. And grammatical exercises, what are they like?

  • Thanks for the tips :D How many languages do you master?

  • What I would give to be friends with someone like him! Maybe even boyfriends ;) No jk lol... Maybehhh

  • Everybody please check out my video where I speak 38 languages that I know on one video. I need a whole bunch of comments. Thanks.

  • How many languages are you fluent in?

  • My name is Cesare Monteleone. I am a 17 year old mild autistic teen. I need you to know that I am a polyglot myself and can speak 38 languages fluently. I sent you a message through your contact email already. I can read and write in all of them except for Hindi and Gujarati, I can only speak them. I have a YouTube channel like you do called "Chezrocksall". You are very innovated and continue to be innovated to languages, being a polyglot, and being the great person you are. Thanks and

  • Professor, I have two questions for you.

    1. What is your favorite language (not including English)?

    2. What order did you learn the languages you know in?

    Please pm me if you get a chance, or comment on this.

    Thank you very much

  • Wow! Didn't you say you have a wife and kids? lol! How do you find time for your family, too, plus having a job? You are stretched pretty thin! About when you are writing 2 pages in each language, what are you writing exactly? Grammar? Copying dictionary pages? Are you teaching your kids? I had lately given up learning Arabic to speak but as a Muslim, I can't totally stop, lol. But you and others here have excited me to blow dust of my materials and get going again to learn! You are awesome!

  • I'm 15 but I have a real interest in learning as many languages as possible so I can speak to the world! I can speak reasonably good French and German and I'm learning Spanish and Dutch with the Hugo in Three Months courses. Can anyone help me with any other good resources for Spanish and Dutch. And would it be a good idea to keep reading German texts (the language I most want to speak to native fluency)?

  • Hi, I'm an american student who goes to an italian highschool in italy and i want to go to an american university. I love languages and i would love to study them in college but i can't seem to find a good one could you please suggest me one??

  • I fantasize about having your life. Total language immersion would be a dream come true. I sit rotting in a cubicle all day inputing data. :( How did you get where you are, and do you have any advice for those of us who aspire to it?

  • amazing dedication

  • When do you eat and crap?

  • @tromboneJTS lol

  • Currently learning Hebrew as a second language so I can look into the past and read the minds of the ancients...

  • CONGRATULATIONS!!! I'm inspired. Not because you are a polyglot, but because you are humble being polyglot!!!

  • Prof, where do you get your learning materials from? For instance, and Arabic storybook and more. THX! Also, what do you usually write about? How do you keep track of words and be sure you aren't forgetting lots of vocabulary you have studied in the past? Thank you!

  • Hello professor! I want to study different languages like Arabic, Japanese, Chinese etc. Do you think is a good idea to go to school to study Foreing Languages or just study by my own? I'm in the military and I want to go to an intelligence unit instead of QuarterMasters Unit. Do you have any advice?

    Thank You for your time!

  • @ligisky I read his site. He says you can learn better on your own, but you need to be extremely focused and dedicated.

  • Alexander, I would love to hear you speaking some of the languages!

  • This gives me some good ideas. Thanks!

  • you've got to be a intj on meyers briggs

  • As a person that is so passionate about languages you really inspire me to get my routine together like yours.I am an aspiring polyglot and this video was just what I needed.

  • This guy is my new idol!

  • So how many languages do you speak?

    Why are you so interested in learning languages?

  • Just One word that defines this man: Discipline.

    Professor, How many hours a day of study do you think is the acceptable to master an idiom?

  • Impressive. Thank you for posting. I love it!

    Quick question: When you do writing in your notebook, do you write with pen or pencil so you can erase mistakes?

    And do you go back and correct your 2-pages of writing afterward or do you allow yourself to look up words in a dictionary? (and what do you write? A summary of what you've read or is it like a journal?)

  • Just goes to show you can't learn a language without hard work. But it can also be fund too!

  • got any language learning tips?

    i only know 2 languages english and ojibwe

  • In all honesty, the human brain could probably only handle 2 maybe 3 languages (as far as extremely fluent) - Not only with the words, but the idioms, dialect, and slang (which is ever changing) as well as the history behind them to fully comprehend - On the more logical side, if a person can get down at least 1000 to 2000 words, I would say that that person is fairly fluent - The final test is obviously immersing yourself amongst those who speak it as a first language.

  • @hairkaren Tell that to Emil Krebs, who mastered 68 languages

  • @LiNaK37 That's pretty cool!!! Obviously a genius with languages (but also an exception.) Most people don't master more than 2 or 3 it would appear. Omniglots generally have a passion for language. The point is that it is not a bad thing at all to know a few languages and the more fluently, the better.

  • @hairkaren If you consider 1000-2000 words as "fairly fluent," the anyone can be "fairly fluent" in 50 languages. In order to understand a language to a fairly fluent level, you would need at least 10,000 words. Since you're a native English speaker, you should know about 20,000 words. Your estimation is off by a factor of 10. As for the number of languages, there are plenty of people who are fairly fluent in many languages. It just takes time and dedication.

  • Отлично, очень вдохновляюще!

    Nice, very inspirational!

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  • You are amazing, this blows my mind. 

  • How many languages do you speak?

  • si on veux on peux.

  • How you you get your base in all of these languages? I know many people say not to do more than one language at once or you'll end up not learning either of the two... and then here I see you doing like 15 at once. I was just wondering how you do it(as an aspiring polyglot myself)

  • @blindedbyforce Please follow some of the links on my channel to my website, where you will find much more information than I can put in a comment here.

  • @ProfASAr why dont you just answer his question?

  • @blindedbyforce

    i read once in one book of my college that human brain can leanr 25 languages at the same time

    yes of course, i think it can be possible if you have A LOT of time, ifyou don´t go to school, have children , partner...It´s completely possible

    i´ve tried to learn 2 languages at the same time

    I got mad!!!-. But cuz i have school, homework, books...I could try 3 languages at the same time, but it´s betta to try 1 :D

  • i love this video. its inspiring and ive probably seen it like 20 times