03828nam a22004815i 4500001001800000003000900018005001700027007001500044008004100059020001800100024003500118050001300153072001600166072002300182072001500205100008800220245013000308250001800438264007900456300006400535336002600599337002600625338003600651347002400687505041800711520178301129650002302912650002102935650001802956650002502974650001502999650001703014650004903031650003103080650002503111650001503136650001703151710003403168773002603202776003603228776003603264856004603300978-3-031-54938-0DE-He21320251030112920.0cr nn 008mamaa240830s2024    sz |    s    |||| 0|eng d  a97830315493807 a10.1007/978-3-031-54938-02doi 4aP37-37.5 7aCFD2bicssc 7aLAN0090402bisacsh 7aCFD2thema1 aDornbierer-Stuart, Joanna.eauthor.4aut4http://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/relators/aut14aThe Origins of Languageh[electronic resource] :bAn Introduction to Evolutionary Linguistics /cby Joanna Dornbierer-Stuart.  a1st ed. 2024. 1aCham :bSpringer Nature Switzerland :bImprint: Palgrave Macmillan,c2024.  aXIX, 188 p. 23 illus., 2 illus. in color.bonline resource.  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier  atext filebPDF2rda0 aPreface -- 1. Introduction -- 2. The design of language -- 3. The purpose of language -- 4. How the physical environment shaped language -- 5. The influence of society and culture on language -- 6. The role of language change in the evolution of language -- 7. How do we produce and understand speech? -- 8. How do we learn to speak? -- 9. How unique is human language? -- 10. Conclusion: Putting it all together.  aThis book offers an introduction to the multidisciplinary subject of evolutionary linguistics, which seeks to explain the biological origins of language and its subsequent development in humans. Roughly six million years ago, a branch of hominids from the forests of East Africa started to thrive in the drier environment created by the East African Rift System. A host of physical developments culminated in the brains of early humans increasing dramatically in size and cognitive power. Influenced by a unique and complex social organisation, communication signals became much more diverse and dependent on memory and learning mechanisms. But language is not only used to interact with our fellow beings. It is also closely connected to our thoughts. This makes language a biological, social, cultural and cognitive phenomenon all at once. What precise role did each of these aspects play in the emergence of language and how were they all coordinated to produce the most sophisticated communication system in the animal kingdom? The book aims to answer these questions and open up the fascinating world of evolutionary linguistics. It is not only aimed at scholars of linguistics, but also students from other disciplines (e.g., psychology, anthropology, evolutionary biology and cognitive science) who have an academic interest in language but may be approaching linguistics for the first time. In addition, the book should appeal to anyone with an interest in the workings of language in general, as well as advanced learners of English. Joanna Dornbierer-Stuart is a language teacher, translator and author based in Switzerland. She is a full member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists. Her previous book, Complete Grammar Guide to Swiss German, was published in 2020. 0aPsycholinguistics. 0aHuman evolution. 0aAnthropology. 0aApplied linguistics. 0aCognition. 0aArchaeology.14aPsycholinguistics and Cognitive Lingusitics.24aEvolutionary Anthropology.24aApplied Linguistics.24aCognition.24aArchaeology.2 aSpringerLink (Online service)0 tSpringer Nature eBook08iPrinted edition:z978303154937308iPrinted edition:z978303154939740uhttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-54938-0