Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof
Ludovic Lazarus (Ludwik Lejzer) Zamenhof (December 15, 1859 - April 14, 1917) was the creator of the international language Esperanto. His first language was Russian. He spoke Polish and German fluently. Later he learned French, Latin, Greek, Hebrew and English. He also had an interest in Yiddish, Italian, Spanish and Lithuanian.
Zamenhof was born on December 15, 1859 in Bialystok (Byelostok), Poland. At the time, Poland was a part of the Russian Empire. Bialystok contained four major groups: Russians, Poles, Germans, and Yiddish-speaking Jews. Zamenhof thought that one common language would join these groups and stop fights between the groups.
Zamenhof decided that the international language must have a simple grammar and be easier to learn than Volapuk.
The language was published in 1887.
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Ludwik Lejzer Zamenhof