Kazakh Teen Speaks 10 Languages, Aims to Learn Even More

A remarkable 11th-grader from Kazakhstan's Pavlodar city has already mastered 10 languages and plans to learn even more.

Asel Abdurakhimova, a student at Lyceum No. 8 for gifted children, is described by her school as a “true phenomenon.” Most of the languages she speaks, she learned on her own-without tutors or specialized programs, The Caspian Post reports via Kazakh media.

Her passion began in early childhood. By age seven, Asel already knew the capitals of every country and dreamed of traveling the world. That dream soon grew into a determination to overcome language barriers.

According to the regional education department, she began studying French independently at nine and later enrolled in her first language courses at eleven. English has been part of her daily routine since 2018, while Chinese she studied both through courses and self-learning, now preparing for the HSK3 exam.

She independently mastered Uzbek, Kazakh, Russian, Spanish, Italian, and Japanese, driven by her curiosity about cultures and people.

“For me, languages are a key to opportunities. My next goal is to learn Arabic so I can speak all six official UN languages,” Asel said.

Today, she speaks Tajik (native), Uzbek (C1), Kazakh (C1), Russian (C1), English (C2), French (C1), Chinese (B1), Spanish (A2), Italian (A2), and Japanese (N4).