2014年3月13日星期四

Multilingualism, Mission: Impossible (X)

From Wikipedia: Multilingualism is the act of using polyglotism. What is polyglotism? It said: Polyglotism is the ability to master numerous languages. Richard Hudson, professor emeritus of linguistics at University College London, coined the term "hyperpolyglot" for a person who can speak twelve or more languages fluently. There are many theories to explain the existence of polyglotism in some individuals, including differences in intellect and brain structure.
It is difficult to judge which individuals are polyglots, as there is no uncontroversial definition of what it means to "master" a language. Nonetheless, many people have been described as polyglots. This includes some cases of "polyglot savants", people who show mental disability in some areas but unusually high ability to learn or use languages.
The article still doesn’t calculate how many words a polyglot savants knows, it just said: Savants are typically individuals with serious mental disabilities.
The normal English speaker master 30,000 words, no one have every counting how many words a polyglot savants have? For first, such person rarely found and even the world exist one in in doubt. There are only two possible. One is such person master words each language is 30,000. Twelve languages would be 30,000x12=360,000 words altogether, roughly the 400,000 words as Churchill did and if he can live to 90, every day is roughly learnt 10 words. Another possible is he know each language with 30,000/12=2,500 words. In either case, he is a monster, and no one can talk with him.

Think about what if someone who knows all the 24 official language of European Union?

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