While language is a fundamental aspect of the modern mind, explanations of how, when and why it evolved have varied across different disciplines. Bringing together evidence from archaeology, anthropology, linguistics, psychology, neuroscience and genetics, Steven Mithen presents a comprehensive account of the development of language and the impact it has had on human culture, arguing that it drew us out of the Stone Age by enabling the origin of farming.
'Wonderful ... A remarkably comprehensive biography of the single most important thing we all share - language' Robin Dunbar
The relationship between language, thought and culture is of concern to anyone with an interest in what it means to be human.
The Language Puzzle explains how the invention of words at 1.6 million years ago began the evolution of human language from the ape-like calls of our earliest ancestors to our capabilities of today, with over 6000 languages in the world and each of us knowing over 50,000 words.
Drawing on the latest discoveries in archaeology, linguistics, psychology, and genetics, Steven Mithen reconstructs the steps by which language evolved; he explains how it transformed the nature of thought and culture, and how we talked our way out of the Stone Age into the world of farming and swiftly into today's Digital Age.
While this radical new work is not shy to reject outdated ideas about language, it builds bridges between disciplines to forge a new synthesis for the evolution of language that will find widespread acceptance as a new standard account for how humanity began.
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https://www.psbooks.co.uk/the-language-puzzle542020The Language Puzzlehttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542020_media-0.jpg10.9910.99GBPInStock/New arrivals/New arrivals/History New Arrivals/New arrivals/Non-Fiction New Arrivals/History/History/Categories/General History/Non-Fiction/Categories/Social Sciences/Gift Ideas/Categories/History Gift Books/Gift Ideas/Categories/View All Gift Books/Gift Ideas/Categories/Gifts Under £15While language is a fundamental aspect of the modern mind, explanations of how, when and why it evolved have varied across different disciplines. Bringing together evidence from archaeology, anthropology, linguistics, psychology, neuroscience and genetics, Steven Mithen presents a comprehensive account of the development of language and the impact it has had on human culture, arguing that it drew us out of the Stone Age by enabling the origin of farming.Hardback00https://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542020_media-1.jpghttps://www.psbooks.co.uk/media/catalog/product/5/4/542020_media-2.jpgadd-to-cartrrp_info:£25.00productId:175969bic_code:CBX, CFF, HD, JHMCCBX, CFF, HD, JHMC£25.00Steven MithenGeneral239x160mmProfileNoHardbackArchaeologyHistory of LanguageHistorical & Comparative LinguisticsCultural
