Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti |
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| Prefect of the Congregation for Studies | |
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| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Appointed | 23 May 1845 |
| Reign ended | 15 March 1849 |
| Predecessor | Luigi Lambruschini |
| Successor | Carlo Vizzardelli |
| Other posts | Cardinal-Priest of Sant'Onofrio (1838-49) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 23 September 1797 |
| Created Cardinal | 12 February 1838 |
| Rank | Cardinal-Priest |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti |
| Born | 19 September 1774 Bologna, Papal States |
| Died | 15 March 1849 (aged 74) Rome, Papal States |
| Buried | Sant'Onofrio |
| Parents | Francesco Mezzofanti Gesualda Dall'Olmo |
Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti (born September 17, 1774 – died March 15, 1849) was a famous Italian cardinal and an amazing hyperpolyglot. A hyperpolyglot is someone who can speak many, many languages. Mezzofanti was known for being able to speak dozens of languages fluently!
Contents
Life Story
Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti was born in Bologna, Italy, to a family that wasn't rich. From a young age, he was amazing at remembering things and had a special talent for music and learning new languages.
Early Studies and Language Skills
He went to school with the Piarists, a religious order. There, he met missionaries from many different countries. By talking to them, he started learning languages like Swedish, German, and Spanish. He also studied Latin and ancient Greek in school.
He finished his studies to become a priest even before he was old enough to be ordained. During this time, he also studied Asian languages. In 1797, he became a priest. Soon after, he became a professor at the University of Bologna, teaching Arabic, Hebrew, Asian languages, and Greek.
In 1797, an English couple, Georgiana Hare-Naylor and her husband, had to return home. They left three of their children with Professor Clotilde Tambroni and a Spanish priest. They chose Mezzofanti to teach their oldest son. This was seen as an unusual choice, but Georgiana trusted her own judgment. Her eldest son later said that his love for learning came from the time he spent with Mezzofanti that year.
Challenges and New Roles
Mezzofanti and Professor Tambroni later lost their jobs at the university. This happened because they refused to take an oath of loyalty to the Cisalpine Republic, which was ruling Bologna at the time. Between 1799 and 1800, he visited many foreign people who were injured during the Napoleonic wars. He helped care for them and used this chance to learn even more European languages.
In 1803, he became an assistant librarian at the Institute of Bologna. Soon after, he got his professor job back, teaching Oriental languages and Greek. The teaching position for Oriental languages was stopped in 1808, but it was brought back when Pope Pius VII returned to power in 1814. Mezzofanti kept this job until 1831.
Moving to Rome
In 1831, Mezzofanti moved to Rome. He became a member of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. This was an important group in the Catholic Church that managed missionary work around the world.
In 1833, he took over from Angelo Mai as the head librarian of the Vatican Library. This is one of the most famous libraries in the world. In 1838, he was made a cardinal, which is a very high rank in the Catholic Church. He also became the director of studies for the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. Besides languages, he was also interested in many other subjects, like different cultures (ethnology), old ruins (archaeology), old coins (numismatics), and even stars (astronomy).
Languages Mezzofanti Spoke
Giuseppe Mezzofanti was truly amazing because he could speak so many languages. According to a book from 1858, he spoke at least thirty languages "with rare excellence." This means he spoke them almost perfectly.
He was reported to have spoken these languages very well:
Biblical Hebrew, Mishnaic Hebrew, Arabic, Chaldee, Coptic, Ancient Armenian, Modern Armenian, Persian, Turkish, Albanian, Maltese, Greek, Romaic, Latin, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, English, Serbo-Croatian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Chinese.
People also said he spoke nine other languages fluently. Plus, he had at least basic knowledge of dozens more! His ability to learn and speak so many languages made him a legend.
See also
In Spanish: Giuseppe Gasparo Mezzofanti para niños
