https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1242-8808
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Juha A Janhunen, Language origins: a puzzle with a missing piece, Journal of Language Evolution, Volume 9, Issue 1-2, January/July 2024, Pages 84–89, https://doi.org/10.1093/jole/lzae007
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Extract
Although there is no scarcity of books on the origins of human language, the topic is never exhausted, and new questions constantly arise with the progress of the various disciplines involved. This is an issue that typically calls for a multi-, cross-, and inter-disciplinary approach and, therefore, collaboration between specialists in fields such as primatology, palaeoanthropology, palaeoecology, archaeology, neurology, human genetics, psychology, semiotics, cognitive science, and, of course, linguistics and phonetics, as well as all the basic and applied sciences that provide the necessary tools for the technical analysis of the data. Professional and still relatively up-to-date multi-author volumes on language origins include, for instance, those edited by Knight et al. (2000), Tallerman, (2005), and Tallerman and Gibson (2012). What has happened more recently is mainly the discovery of additional palaeoanthropological remains and archaeological sites, as well as, more importantly, increased insights into the history of the human genome. Of particular significance has been the confirmation of the close genetic relationship of Homo sapiens with the Neanderthals and their Denisovan cousins.
