Kato Lomb
Kató Lomb was a Hungarian interpreter, translator, language genius and one of the first simultaneous interpreters of the world.
Originally she graduated in physics and chemistry, but her interest soon led her to languages. Native in Hungarian, she was able to interpret fluently in nine or ten languages (in four of them even without preparation), and she translated technical literature and read belles-lettres in six languages. She was able to understand journalism in further eleven languages. As she put it, altogether she earned money with sixteen languages (Bulgarian, Chinese, Danish, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Ukrainian). She learned these languages mostly by self-effort, as an autodidact. Her aims to acquire these languages were most of all practical, to satisfy her interest.
According to her own account, her long life was highlighted not primarily by the command of languages but the actual study of them. Through her books, published in Hungarian in several editions as well as in some other languages, interviews (in print and on the air) and conversations, she tried to share this joy with generations.
“The beauty of a language is, generally judged by its soft or rigid, melodious or harsh, ring. Other aspects, such as the flexibility of derivation, play hardly any role in grading. Were it the case, Russian would certainly be placed on the winner’s stand. It would rank first in plasticity.”
“He who knows other languages feels even closer to his own language.”
“The spread of languages shouldn't imply the decay of national languages. There are so many literary and historical memories, so many joys and sorrows of the past linked to them that it is an obligation for all of us to guard their present and future.”
“... I never looked for or found national differences in the various places of the world, only common features—eternal human nature.”
“[B]ooks, which can be consulted at any time, questioned again and again, and read into scraps, cannot be rivaled as a language-learning tool.”
“One should connect language learning with either work or leisure. And not at the expense of them but to supplement them.”
“[T]he time spent on language learning is lost unless it reaches a certain—daily and weekly—concentration.”
“[R]epetition is as an essential element of language learning as a knife is to a lathe or fuel is to an internal combustion engine.”
“[S]tudy has never been a burden for me but always an inexhaustible source of joy.”
“I feel such a difference between a philologist/linguist and a linguaphile as, say, a choreographer and a ballerina.”
“[S]elf-assurance, motivation, and a good method play a much more important role in language learning than the vague concept of innate ability, and that dealing with languages is not only an effective and joyful means of developing human relationships, but also of preserving one's mental capacity and spiritual balance.”
“My view is that knowing languages is part of the process of becoming a cultured person.”
“Aside from mastery in the fine arts, success in learning anything is the result of genuine interest and amount of energy dedicated to it.”
“Knowledge—like a nail—is made load-bearing by being driven in. If it's not driven deep enough, it will break when any weight is put upon it.”
“Solely in the world of languages is the amateur of value. Well-intentioned sentences full of mistakes can still build bridges between people.”
“Language is the only thing worth knowing even poorly.”
“Whenever I read statistical reports, I try to imagine my unfortunate contemporary, the Average Person, who, according to these reports, has 0.66 children, 0.032 cars, and 0.046 TVs.”