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The evolution of language.

M A Nowak¹, D C Krakauer

¹Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA. nowak@ias.edu

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|July 8, 1999

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Language evolution was driven by the need to reduce communication errors. Combining simple sounds into words and then into sentences with basic grammar allowed for complex communication, enabling unlimited object encoding.

Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Linguistics
Game theory

Background:

The emergence of language fundamentally altered human society.
Understanding the evolutionary origins of language is crucial for human evolution studies.

Purpose of the Study:

To model the evolution of protolanguages from nonlinguistic societies.
To investigate how signals become associated with objects.
To explain the development of words and grammar.

Main Methods:

Utilizing evolutionary game theory to model language origins.
Analyzing signal-error probabilities in early communication.
Simulating word formation and sentence construction.

Main Results:

Related Experiment Videos

Communication errors limit early protolanguage complexity.
Word formation, by combining distinct sounds, overcomes the "error limit".
Simple grammatical rules evolved to minimize communication mistakes.

Conclusions:

Language evolution is a process of natural selection favoring error reduction.
Grammar originated as a system to enhance communication accuracy.
This framework offers a systematic approach to studying language origins.