The origin of language is a difficult subject to study because there are no records of the first signs of speech, nor is there anything such as fossils to help in the study of speech and how it first came about. The only thing that can be done is to hypothesize. One such hypothesis, is presented to us by Greg Urban, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He proposes the idea that language originated through the use of metasignaling, which is comprised of signals that can have dual meanings based on the context; these first signals began more as cries rather than distinguishable words. He also focuses on the advantage that humans have which predisposes them to be more qualified to speak. This advantage is the connection between the motor area of the neocortex and the larynx. The control over the larynx is vital to the production of syllables and then to the formation of language. Primates, the closest ancestors to humans, lack this connection and therefore cannot form syllables the way that humans are able to. Urban also hypothesizes that the origins of language come from communications of sound between mother and child, and for language to proliferate and continue it must be between adults as well. These sounds would then evolve into signals that might be used to communicate without disturbing daily activities. It is also very useful in signaling for danger and passing on useful information such as what is edible and what is not. This ability to communicate without having to halt productivity, and being able to alert others of danger would be advantageous and therefore selected for survival. This would lead to greater control over the larynx and other vocal instruments by way of the neocortex. Urban state, “Selective pressure would favor individuals who could not only control their own larynx and vocal apparatus in the service of strategic reasoning but also interpret the vocal signals emitted by others through reasoning about them. The net effect would be individuals primed to invent and interoperate new vocalizations.” This new form of communication would be advantageous to humans and therefore selection would favor those who were able to produce and interoperate signals, which would continue to promote the connection of the neocortex and the larynx. Once this connection is made and the process is started then the formation of new signals can begin. The formation of new signals is done by altering existing signals so that they are still recognizable, but still obviously different from the original. Henceforth, it is argued that language was determined by culture.
Along with many hypotheses on this subject there are also many focused on the reasons for the development of language. In Roy D’Andrade’s article, “Cultural Darwinism and Language”, he discusses five main assumptions used to explain this phenomenon. The first assumption is, “that language is not a unified entity but, rather, consists of a multifunctional variety of perceptual, and behavioral processes and structures.” Second, a multitude of functions that the human language provides, like communication, are shared with other species and not confined to humans alone. The last three functions are chiefly confined to humans and are called the representative function, the commissive function, and finally the declarative function. The representative function represents the declarative sentence that communicates information about something that may or may not be present. The commissive function represents the obligation or promise to do something, and the declarative function is where the person talking generates some variety of symbolic condition. Not all of these functions came about at once but were added as needed and helped to shape language as we know it.
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