Evidence that Neandertals had the same capacity of speech as modern humans due to an archaeological discovery in 1989 of a hyoid bone which functions similarly to that of a human (Hogenboom, 2013). The evolutionary history of language was touched on briefly in the book in Chapter Eight. The proto-languages were discussed, specifically Proto-Indo-European—which is the ancestor of most European languages today. A proto-language is a parent language from which other languages branch off (Salzmann, 2015).
A language is classified into proto-languages due to structural similarities in the grammar. When a language has the same structure as another or basic root word there is an assumed relationship. The climate/environment of a language can also be surmised due to the kinds of words available in a language and how numerous they are. For example, a language originating from a dry, arid climate would probably have more words for the dry, arid conditions than for a marsh-like environment. If Neandertals had the same capacity for speech as humans and they used this capacity, is there a common proto-language? Published in Frontiers in Language Sciences, Dan Dediu and Stephen C. Levinson (2013) wrote a piece on Neandertals and their capacity for language. On Dediu’s website a summary of the piece states, “Interestingly, given that we know from the archaeological record and recent genetic data that the modern humans spreading out of Africa interacted both genetically and culturally with the Neandertals and Denisovans, then just as our bodies carry around some of their genes, maybe our languages preserve traces of their languages too” (2013).
If Neandertals have the ability for speech, they could have developed a language used to communicate. Evidence of Neandertal DNA in human genes shows Neandertal and human groups interacted (Dediu, 2013). During these interactions, did they use a pidgin speech, a “trade language” which develops to communicate across language boundaries. Or was a common language spoken which could potentially be found in traces within living languages today?
References
Dediu, D., Levinson, S. (2013, July 9). Did Neandertals have language? Retrieved from https://www.mpg.de/7448453/Neandertals-language
Hogenboom, M. (2013, December 20). Neanderthals could speak like modern humans, study suggests. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-25465102
Salzmann, Z., Stanlaw, J., & Adachi, N. (2015). Language, culture, and society (2nd ed). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Proto-languages are a really interesting topic to me, and the idea that there would have been a common proto-language is fascinating.There would have to have been some sort of way of communication between different Neanderthal groups, as there is evidence, like you mentioned, that they interacted with each other at least to some degree. I'm not sure as to which it would be though; depending on the distance between different groups, a pidgin may have been more likely. On the other hand, a common language would have helped in more than just trade; it would have been a way for groups of Neanderthals to come together, possibly intermarry, perhaps even forming kinship ties? And as you mentioned, if they did have the same capacity for language as we did, it would make sense that a common language would have developed. I'm sorry if I'm not making much sense, I just find this topic fascinating, and there's a lot of interesting angles to look deeper into.
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