Language Origins

1: Introduction PART I Evolution of Speech and Speech Sounds: How did spoken language emerge? Michael Studdert-Kennedy: Introduction to Part I: How did links between perception and production emerge for spoken language? 2: Michael Arbib: The Mirror System Hypothesis: How did protolanguage evolve? 3: Michael Studdert-Kennedy: How Did Language go Discrete? 4: Pierre-Yves Oudeyer: From Holistic to Discrete Speech Sounds: The blind snowflake maker hypothesis 5: Bart de Boer: Infant-Directed Speech and Evolution of Language PART II Evolution of Grammar: How did syntax and morphology emerge? Maggie Tallerman: Introduction to Part II: Protolanguage and the Development of Complexity 6: Maggie Tallerman: Initial Syntax and Modern Syntax: Did the clause evolve from the syllable? 7: Dana McDaniel: The Potential Role of Production in the Evolution of Syntax 8: Andrew Carstairs-McCarthy: The Evolutionary Origin of Morphology 9: Bernard Comrie and Tania Kuteva: The Evolution of Grammatical Structures and 'Functional Need' Explanations 10: Bradley Franks and Kate Rigby: Deception and Mate Selection: Some implications for relevance and the evolution of language PART III Analogous and Homologous Traits: What can we learn from other species? Alison Wray: Introductin to Part III: The Broadening Scope of Animal Communication Research 11: Irene Maxine Pepperberg: An Avian Perspective on Language Evolution: Implications of simultaneous development of vocal and physical object combinations by a Grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) 12: Klaus Zuberbühler: Linguistic Prerequisites in the Primate Lineage PART IV Learnability and Diversity: How did languages emerge and diverge? James Hurford: Introduction to Part IV: Computer Modelling Widens the Focus of Language Study 13: Henry Brighton, Simon Kirby, and Kenny Smith: Cultural Selection for Learnability: Three principles underlying the view that language adapts to be learnable 14: Ted Briscoe: Coevolution of the Language Faculty and Language(s) With Decorrelated Encodings 15: Matthew Roberts, Luca Onnis, and Nick Chater: Acquisition and Evolution of Quasi-regular Languages: Two puzzles for the price of one 16: Zach Solan, Eytan Ruppin, David Horn, and Shimon Edelman: Evolution of Language Diversity: Why fitness counts 17: Andrew D. M. Smith: Mutual Exclusivity: Communicative success despite conceptual divergence