L. L. Zamenhof languages spoken, written or signed French
English: Ludwik Lejzer Zamenhof – English pronunciation: 
Esperanto: Ludoviko Lazaro Zamenhofo – pronounced [ludoˈviko laˈzaro zamenˈhofo]
French: Louis Lazare Zamenhof – pronounced [lwi la.zaʁ za.mɛn.of]
German: Ludwig "Levi" Lazarus Samenhof – pronounced [ˈluːtvɪç ˈlaːtsaʁʊs ˈzaːmənhoːf]
Hebrew: אליעזר לודוויג זמנהוף, romanized: Eli'ezer Ludwig Zamenhof – pronounced [eliˈ(ʕ)ezeʁ ˈludvig ˈzamenhof]
Lithuanian: Liudvikas Lazaris (Leizeris) Zamenhofas
Polish: Ludwik Łazarz Zamenhof – pronounced [ˈludvʲik ˈwazaʃ zãˈmɛ̃nxɔf]
Russian: Людвик Лазарь (Лейзер) Маркович Заменгоф, romanized: Lyudvik Lazar' (Leyzer) Markovich Zamengof
Belarusian: Людвіг Лазар Маркавіч Заменгоф (Заменгоў), romanized: Liudvih Lazar Markavič Zamienhof (Zamienhoŭ)
Yiddish: לײזער לוי זאַמענהאָף, romanized: Leyzer "Leyvi" ZamenhofBorn into an Ashkenazi family, at his birth Zamenhof was given the common Hebrew name Eliezer by his parents, the equivalent of the English Lazarus. However, as the area was a part of the Russian Empire at the time, his name was recorded on his birth certificate as Лейзер Заменгов, Leyzer Zamengov, using the Yiddish form of the forename and a russified version of his surname; many later Russian language documents also include the patronymic Маркович, Markovich « son of Mark » (in reference to his father, Markus), as is the custom in the language. His family name is of German origin and was originally written Samenhof; this was later transcribed into Yiddish as זאַמענהאָף, then re-romanized back as Zamenhof. The change of the initial letter from « S » to « Z » is not unusual, as in German an initial « s » is pronounced [z].
In his adolescence he used both the Yiddish Leyzer and the Russian Lazar when writing his first name. While at university, Zamenhof began using the Russian name Lyudovik (also transcribed Ludovic or translated as Ludwig) in place of Lazar, possibly in honor of Francis Lodwick, who in 1652 had published an early conlang proposal. When his brother Leon became a doctor and started signing his name "Dr L. Zamenhof", Zamenhof reclaimed his birth name Lazar and from 1901 signed his name "Dr L. L. Zamenhof" to avoid confusion with his brother. The two L's do not seem to have specifically represented either name, and the order Ludwik Lejzer is a modern convention.
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