George Psalmanazar - Early Life

Early Life

Although Psalmanazar intentionally obscured many details of his early life, he is believed to have been born in southern France, perhaps in Languedoc or Provence, to Catholic parents sometime between 1679 and 1684. His birth name is unknown. According to his posthumously published autobiography, he was educated in a Franciscan school and then a Jesuit academy. In both of these institutions, he claimed to have been celebrated by his teachers for what he called "my uncommon genius for languages." Indeed, by his own account Psalmanazar was something of a child prodigy, since he notes that he attained fluency in Latin by the age of seven or eight, and excelled in competition with children twice his age. Later encounters with a sophistic philosophy tutor made him disenchanted with academicism, however, and Psalmanazar discontinued his education around the time he was fifteen or sixteen.