The President Who Spoke The Most Languages

In the history of U.S. Presidents, linguistic prowess has varied widely, with many being monolingual, a few bilingual, and a handful true polyglots. Surprisingly, out of the 46 individuals who have held the nation's highest office, a substantial number—25 to be precise—knew only English. This monolingual trend is more pronounced among modern presidents.

However, a select few U.S. Presidents have been conversational in a second language. Like George W. Bush in Spanish and Obama in Indonesian.

The early era of American politics tells a different tale, where multilingualism was not only common but often considered a mark of a well-educated individual. Many of the Founding Fathers and early presidents were true polyglots, with a good handle on several languages. These leaders often learned classical languages such as Latin and Greek, which were staples of a classical education, and they also showed proficiency in modern languages like French, Spanish, and Dutch, which were essential for diplomatic affairs and intellectual pursuits of the time. Thomas Jefferson and John Quincy Adams are prime examples, both adept in several languages, which allowed them to engage directly with the international texts and political figures of their day

[cheesypoofs]

Garfield could reportedly write Greek with his left hand and Latin with his right simultaneously.

[adrianputra]

“Oh, he’s fluent in Mandarin, I guess he’s had a job in Chi—“

“Australia.”

[stzranger]

those two guys fighting for the first place in the duolingo league

[pooryorick]

I knew it was John Quincy Adams. He accompanied his father on diplomatic missions when younger. Thomas Jefferson also spealnt time in Europe. And both Jefferson and JQA were trained in the classics, which meant they knew Greek and Latin also.

[Marsproject]

Fun fact Hoover and his wife would speak Mandarin to one another when they didn't want people to understand what they were saying.

[kraykyle]

Fluent in Mandarin due to his time as a mining engineer in Australia. I think that's the first time that's ever been said.

[erraticonteuse]

I knew John Quincy Adams would be one, he started his political career as a diplomat when he was *14* as a secretary for the US ambassador to Russia. This was under Catherine the Great whose first language was German and who used French as a diplomatic language. The US ambassador to Russia only spoke English, so he stopped off in the Netherlands to see Ambassador John Adams Sr. and asked if he could borrow John Quincy, who was in Europe with his dad to get a European education.

[littlefellalol]

Fun fact: Martin van buren also was the first president to be born a US citizen

[luckychonk]

Indonesian here. Obama grew up in Jakarta (our capital) and attended a public elementary school here for some time. At his old elementary school there is a statue of him there now. I believe it is him as a child.

Im not sure if i can say he is a great guy due to some controversial political stances he has. But he was definitely a fan favorite american president among indonesians due to his connection to Indonesia

[paulallenscards]

I like to imagine W’s Spanish vocabulary stops and ends at “hola señor, dos quesadillas por favor”

[richardthomas]

Add to the Jefferson list: WELSH. He is known to have corresponded with his secretary Meriwether Lewis in Welsh.

[sipjedekat]

I like this guy's style of explaining things. I don't know why, but it's always so easy to listen to and informational at the same time.

[TheZapan]

Jefferson was fluent enough in French, not only to be an ambassador in Paris, but also to understand the genius of an old and forgotten "mécanicien" named Jacques de Vaucanson, often credited as the inventor of the modern world. When Franklin and Jefferson were in Paris, Vaucanson was already in his seventies and largely ignored at the court, yet observers noted how both men scrupulously noted his radical ideas on how to birth "the perfect industrial nation, " while most of his contemporaries only knew him for his novelty automatons.

[andrewvaldez]

George W actually did an interview with Jorge Ramos from Univision and explained while he would like to speak Spanish he quote "didn't want to ruin your beautiful language". Also his brother Jeb is married to a Mexican woman and speaks fluent Spanish.

[joeycurry]

I still remember seeing the Hamilton song of the 1800 election in 8th grade.

[drewmalesky]

John Addams last words were "Jefferson still lives"

...unbeknownst to him Jefferson had died a few hours earlier.

That's some real nemesis shit.

[AlliedIntuition]

Hoover didn’t learn mandarin in Australia, he learned it in Tiajin, China. As an Australian, nice one mate, very perceptive.

[miguelfranco]

Meanwhile, D. Pedro II of Brazil spoke 14 languages ​​fluently, including Sanskrit, Mandarin, Tupi and Latin

[XaviRonaldo]

As I understand being fluent means you're able to think in that language without having to translate in your head before speaking

[Tinyflypie]

I live in Australia but so far it hasn't made me fluent in Mandarin. Hoover didn't learn it here either. He learned Mandarin in Tianjin when he worked there