* Ziad Fazah: Claims fluency in 58 languages, though this has been disputed.
* Emil Krebs: Was a German scholar who reportedly spoke 68 languages and dialects.
* Kenneth Hale: An American linguist who was fluent in over 70 languages and dialects, including many Indigenous languages.
It's important to note that fluency is a subjective term. While some people may have a basic understanding of many languages, others might be truly fluent in a smaller number.
Other factors that complicate the question:
* Dialects: Are dialects considered separate languages?
* Levels of fluency: What counts as fluency? Speaking, reading, writing, understanding?
* Dead languages: Are people who speak dead languages included?
Therefore, while we can point to individuals with impressive language skills, crowning a "most fluent" is difficult and subjective.