Theories And Origin Of Human Language PDF

 THE EVOLUTION OF If the human brain is structured and wired for the acquisition and use of language, how and when did this development occur? Two scholarly American Anthropological societies, the American Anthropological Association...

 THE EVOLUTION OF If the human brain is structured and wired for the acquisition and use of language, how and when did this development occur? Two scholarly American Anthropological societies, the American Anthropological Association Association and the New York Academy of Science, held forums in 1974 and 1976 to review research on this question. It is not a new question, and New York Academy of seems to have arisen with the origin of species. Science THE ORIGIN OF LANGUAGE Nothing no doubt would be more interesting than to know from the historical documents the exact process by which the first man began to lisp his words, and thus to be rid forever of all the theories on the origin of speech. M. Muller, 1871 God’s gift to mankind Human invention Cries of nature a. Judeo-Christian Tradition b. Egyptian c. Babylonian d. Islam e. Hinduism  When God created the first human beings (Adam and Eve) He created them in His own image (Genesis1:26- 27). This likeness unquestionably included the ability to engage in intelligible speech via human language and he gave to Adam in the Garden of Eden dominion over all the animals, and Adam’s first exercise of this dominion consisted in naming them.  Genesis 2:19 “And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air, and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them; and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field.”  Babylonian Egyptian Tradition Tradition Thoth Nabu ISLAM TRADITION The two divine religions, Islam and Christianity, agree on the same fact that language is a gift of God to humanity. the Holy Quran in the Surah Al-Baqara (The Cow) the following verse: “And He taught Adam the names of all things; then He placed them before the angels, and said: ‘Tel[l me the names of these if ye are right’” Both of these divine expressions indicate clearly that mankind was created from the beginning with an innate capacity to use language.  HINDU TRADITION  Brahma Brahma was the creator and introduced Sanskrit language to the Sages of Sanskrit celestial bodies. Therefore, this language is also called Dev Vani, which means the language of gods. It was during 18th century when a similarity between Sanskrit, Latin and Greek was found, which gave the reason to study and discover the relationship of all Indo-European languages. The Dev Vani earliest form of Sanskrit language was Vedic Sanskrit that came approximately around 1500-200 B.C. This was the period when knowledge was imparted orally through the generations.  The original pronunciations of Vedic Sanskrit was sacred and must be preserved.. This led to important linguistic study, since their language had already changed greatly since the hymns of the Vedas had been written. -First Linguist knows to us --wrote a detailed grammar of Sanskrit in which the phonological rules revealed the earlier pronunciation for use in religious worship The Greek Historian Herodotus reported that the Egyptian pharaoh Psammetichhus sought to determine the most primitive “natural” language by experimental methods. The monarch was said to have placed two infants in isolated mountain hut, to be cared for by a mute servant. The first uttered word was bekos, the word for “bread” in Phrygian, the language spoken in a province of Phrygia in the northwest corner of what is now Turkey. Based on this experiment, this ancient language, which has long since died out, was thought to be the original language. ….but the children died before they uttered a single word. The Scottish children “spak very guid Ebrew.” Hebrew was the language used in the Garden of Eden. The belief that the language one speaks is superior in all terms to all other languages is called linguistic chauvinism. Protolanguage Chaldee the language spoken in Jerusalem during the Roman occupation In 1887, Joseph Elkins maintained that there is no other language which can be more reasonable assumed to be the speech first used in the world’s gray morning than can Chinese. There is much interest today among biologists as well as linguists in the relationship between the development of language and the evolutionary development of the human species. There are those who view language as a difference in degree between human species. Natural Evolution Theory  Continuity View those who view language ability as a difference in degree between humans and other primates Discontinuity View those who see the onset of language ability as a qualitative leap – the discontinuity view  Theory of Natural Selection by 1838 He had privately applied it since then to human emotion, language, and cognition. Many Darwin’s opponents jumped on human mental powers, and language in particular, as the key weakness of his theory. Charles Darwin  “I cannot doubt that language owes its origin to the imitation and modification, aided by signs and gestures, of various natural sounds, the voices of other animals, and man's own instinctive cries” The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, 1871 This theory proposes that at some point in human evolutionary development humans acquired a more sophisticated brain which made language invention and learning possible.  Homo sapiens emerged within the last 150,000 years. By 30,000, BC all other species of humanoids seem to have been supplanted by Homo sapiens. maybe the success of our species vis-a- vis other hominids be explained by its possession of superior communicative skills, where speaking people could teach, plan, organize, and convey more sophisticated information. "the wise human“ Homo loquens "the speaking human" Another point that it is not yet clear what role, if any, hemispheric lateralization played in language evolution. Lateralization certainly makes greater specialization possible. Research conducted with birds and monkeys, however shows that lateralization is not unique to the human brain. Thus, while it constitute a necessary step in the evolution of language, it is not a sufficient one.  Language began through some sort of human mimicry of naturally occurring sounds or movements. Invention Theory 1. Ding-Dong Hypothesis 1.Warning Hypothesis 1.Mother Tongue (Max Müller’s attack on 2.Yo- Heave -Ho Theory evolution) Hypothesis 2. Pooh-Pooh Hypothesis (Alternative Origins (The Expressive or in Sociality or Song) Interjectionist Theory) 3.Lying Hypothesis 3. Bow-wow hypothesis (The Onomatopoetic Theory of Word Origins) 4. Ta-ta Hypothesis  1. Ding-Dong Hypothesis (Max Müller’s attack on evolution) The problem with this hypothesis is that: Suggested by Oxford Professor onomatopoeia (imitation of sound, auditory iconicity) is a very limited part of Friederich Max Müller in 1873 the vocabulary of any language. bases the origins of language imitative sounds differ from language to language: Russian: ba-bakh=bang, bukh= on onomatopoeia thud. states that all things have a unclear how to provide onomatopoeia vibrating natural resonance, for silent objects such as a rock. It does not consider abstract ideas like echoed somehow by man in his love or justice, as there are no sounds for earliest words these words. It does not supply words for grammar or Examples include words such abstract items in the English language. as “boom,” “crash,” and “oink Because of these limitations it is considered a limited hypothesis.  2. Pooh-Pooh Hypothesis (The Expressive or Interjectionist Theory) The problem with this hypothesis is that: Introduced by pre -Socratic philosopher emotional exclamations are a very small Democritus, (460 BC - 370 BC), later held part of any language. by Epicurus and Lucretius They are also highly language specific. put forward by Giambattista Vico and Jean For instance, the essence of emotional Jacques Rousseau in the 18th century response for pain is “ouch” in English, “oi” in holds that the first words came from Russian and “ eee” in Cherokee. Thus, involuntary exclamations of dislike, exclamations are more like other words in hunger, pain, or pleasure, eventually that they reflect the phonology of each leading to the expression of more separate language developed ideas and emotions ha-ha-ha, wawa-wa  3. Bow-wow hypothesis (The Onomatopoetic Theory of Word Origins) The problem with this hypothesis is that: Attributed to the German a lot of words that describe animal philosopher Johann Gottfried sounds in different languages are Herder in 1772 similar. For instance, in English a pig human language and vocabulary makes the sound “oink -oink.” In originated as a form of imitation Russian the sound is translated as “hyruhyru” and in Chinese the sound is translated as “oh-ee-oh-ee.” As one can see, these words represent the sound of a single animal in different languages. the sound and pronunciation of these words are not similar  4.Ta-ta Hypothesis hypothesized by Charles Darwin in The problem with this hypothesis is that 1871 human gestures, just like onomotopoeic “I cannot doubt that language owes words, differ from culture to culture. its origin to the imitation and Where in some places nodding means modification, aided by signs and “yes,” in others nodding means the gestures, of various natural sounds, opposite. For instance: English crossing the voices of other animals, and the finger for good luck vs. Russian "fig" man's own instinctive cries” gesture; nodding for yes vs. for no in Later proposed by Sir Richard Paget Turkish and Bulgarian; knocking on wood in 1930 vs. spitting over the left shoulder three states that language and the times. development of sound was generated to support the hand gestures and movements of the individual  1. Warning Hypothesis Language may have evolved from warning signals such as those used by animals. Perhaps language started with a warning to others, such as Look out, Run, or Help to alert members of the tribe when some lumbering beast was approaching. Other first words could have been hunting instructions or instructions connected with other work. In other words, the first words were indexes used during everyday activities and situations  2. Yo- Heave -Ho Hypothesis (Alternative Origins in Sociality or Song) language developed on the basis of human cooperative efforts, the sounds of a person involved in physical effort could be the source of our language language emerged from collective rhythmic labor, the attempt to synchronize muscular effort resulting in sounds such as heave alternating with sounds such as ho Plato believed that language developed out of sheer practical necessity Modern English has the saying: Necessity is the mother of invention Speech and right-hand coordination are both controlled in the left hemisphere of the brain. This could be a possible clue that manual dexterity and the need to communicate developed in unison. The importance of yo-he-ho hypothesis is that it places the development of human language in some SOCIAL CONTEXT.  3. Lying Hypothesis E. H. Sturtevant argued that, since all real intentions or emotions get involuntarily expressed by gesture, look or sound, voluntary communication must have been invented for the purpose of lying or deceiving. He proposed that the need to deceive and lie--to use language in contrast to reality for selfish ends-- was the social prompting that got language started.  Scientific Monogenesis: The Mother Tongue Theory Monogenetic Theory of language Origin -holds that one original language spoken by a single group of Homo sapiens perhaps as early as 150 thousand years ago gave rise to all human languages spoken on the Earth today The mother tongue theory is connected with a more general theory of human origin known as the Out of Africa theory The Out of Africa theory, also known as the recent African origin theory, is one of the leading hypotheses explaining the origin and spread of anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens) across the world. It proposes that all modern humans share a common ancestry, and that this ancestry can be traced back to a population of early Homo sapiens in Africa. Here are the key points of the Out of Africa theory: 1. African Origin: According to this theory, anatomically modern humans first appeared in Africa around 200,000 to 300,000 years ago. These early humans were the ancestors of all contemporary human populations. 2. Migration: The theory suggests that a group of Homo sapiens left Africa in a series of migration waves, beginning around 70,000 to 100,000 years ago. These migrations led to the colonization of other parts of the world. 3. Replacement Hypothesis: One version of the Out of Africa theory posits that these early African migrants completely replaced existing archaic human populations, such as Neanderthals in Europe and Denisovans in Asia. It is believed that the anatomically modern humans were more successful in adapting to various environments and outcompeted the archaic humans. 4. Genetic Evidence: Genetic studies have provided strong support for the Out of Africa theory. Research on mitochondrial DNA (inherited from the mother) and the Y- chromosomal DNA (inherited from the father) has shown that the genetic diversity of non-African populations is a subset of the genetic diversity found in African populations. This suggests a common African origin for all human populations. 5. Fossil Evidence: Fossils of early Homo sapiens and their ancestors have been discovered in Africa, supporting the theory's contention that Africa was the birthplace of modern humans. 6. Archaeological Evidence: Archaeological findings, such as tools and artifacts, also provide evidence of early human migration out of Africa. These tools have been found in various parts of the world, corresponding to the estimated timing of migration events. 7. Variation in Modern Human Traits: The Out of Africa theory explains the observed variation in modern human traits as a result of local adaptations to different environments after the migration out of Africa. The Mother Tongue Theory and the Out of Africa Theory are not directly related concepts, but they both pertain to aspects of human history and evolution. They do intersect in some ways, primarily in the broader context of human origins and migrations: Mother Tongue Theory (Linguistic Hypothesis): The Mother Tongue Theory, proposed by linguist Merritt Ruhlen, suggests that all human languages can be traced back to a common ancestral language, referred to as "Proto-World" or "Mother Tongue." This theory focuses on the historical development and diversification of human languages, seeking to identify shared linguistic roots. The Out of Africa Theory focuses on the physical and genetic aspects of human evolution, while the Mother Tongue Theory explores linguistic connections among human languages.  Tower of Babel Story According to Genesis 11:1-9, all people used to speak the same language. Their unity of language allowed them to collaborate efficiently. They decided to build a grand tower, so tall it would reach into the heavens. Doing so would bring them glory, or so they believed. God watched his people start their construction efforts and realized that they were immensely powerful because of their ability to communicate. He realized that people would be able to do virtually anything, potentially giving them too much power over a world that was meant to be ruled by God. Before the tower was completed, God made everyone speak different languages. No longer able to understand each other, the builders were unable to complete the tower. They spread out across the world, which is how linguistic and cultural diversity began.