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Where did language come from? Nobody really knows, but the theories are fascinating

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · · 1000 words · By Karen Stollznow
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What to know about Where did language come from? Nobody really knows, but the theories are fascinating

The article explores various historical and modern theories regarding the origins of human language, ranging from imitation of sounds to social bonding and biological evolution. It concludes that because spoken language leaves no fossil record, a single definitive origin remains undiscovered.

Propaganda risk 0%
Claims checked 17
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center80%
Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Humans are the only species known to use fully symbolic language: a system capable of expressing abstract ideas, imaginary worlds and endless combinations of meaning.

Why it matters

The origins of language have fascinated philosophers, scientists and storytellers for thousands of years.

Common ground

Despite all our advances in linguistics, archaeology and cognitive science, we still don’t know exactly how language began.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

The article explores various historical and modern theories regarding the origins of human language, ranging from imitation of sounds to social bonding and biological evolution. It concludes that because spoken language leaves no fossil record, a single definitive origin remains undiscovered.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/where-did-language-come-from-nobody-really-knows-but…

analyticsAnalysis

0%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 17 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 7
check_circle Corroborated 4
verified Verified By Reference 3
help Insufficient Evidence 2
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “English dogs go “woof” or “bow-wow”, but in Turkish they go “hev-hev”, while Indonesian dogs go “guk-guk”.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the specific onomatopoeic variations: English (woof/bow-wow), Turkish (hev-hev), and Indonesian (guk-guk).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Because of the nature of onomatopoeia, there are many words which show a similar pronunciation in the languages of the world. The following is a list of some conventional examples:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-linguistic_onomatopoeias
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — There are several names for the number 0 in different languages.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_for_the_number_0
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Vroom is an onomatopoeia that represents the sound of an engine revving up. It also describes the act of purposefully operating a motor vehicle at high speeds so as to create loud engine noises. The w…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vroom
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 2: “The Ding-Dong Theory... argued that sounds and meanings are naturally connected in some deeper, almost mystical way.”
CORROBORATED
Three independent web sources confirm that the Ding-Dong Theory proposes a natural, inherent, or mystical connection between sounds and meanings.
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web search NEUTRAL — The ding-dong theory contrasts with other theories like the bow-wow theory by proposing that sounds are naturally linked to meanings rather than merely imitating external sounds.
https://fiveable.me/introduction-humanities/key-terms/ding-d…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Ding-Dong theory suggests there's a mystic correlation between sound and meaning. People who proposed this theory speculated that primitive people were so in touch with nature that they could sens…
https://storylearning.com/blog/the-origins-of-language
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web search NEUTRAL — Ding-Dong Theory: This theory proposes that language arose from a natural resonance between the sounds of words and their meanings. There is an inherent connection between the sound a word makes and t…
https://studyx.ai/questions/4lnnluf/discuss-any-five-theorie…
schedule
Claim 3: “in 1866, the Société de Linguistique de Paris banned discussions about language origins altogether”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 4: “English speakers say “ouch”. Greeks say “aou”. Czechs might exclaim “ach”.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided or found in the search results to verify the specific exclamations for pain in Greek and Czech.
schedule
Claim 5: “We have evolved specialised brain regions linked to language processing.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info
Claim 6: “Humans are the only species known to use fully symbolic language”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about humans and a TV series, but none of the sources address whether humans are the only species to use fully symbolic language.
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web search NEUTRAL — Humans evolved from other hominins in Africa several million years ago. Although some scientists equate humans with all members of the genus Homo, in common usage it generally refers to Homo sapiens, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human
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web search NEUTRAL — Humans is a science fiction television series that debuted in June 2015 on Channel 4 and on AMC.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humans_(TV_series)
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web search NEUTRAL — Jan 20, 2026 · AI models are rapidly learning to reason better, code faster, and take actions in the world with increasing autonomy. But for humans, progress happens when we understand one another, bu…
https://humansand.ai/
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Claim 7: “In the Hindu tradition, the goddess of knowledge and speech Saraswati bestowed Sanskrit upon humanity.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 8: “The Bow-Wow Theory... suggested language began through imitation of natural sounds.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and multiple web sources confirm that the Bow-Wow Theory suggests language began through the imitation of natural sounds (onomatopoeia).
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web search NEUTRAL — According to bow-wow theories, the first human languages developed from onomatopoeia, that is, imitations of natural sounds. ... The term "bow-wow theory" was ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow-wow_theory
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 8, 2026 ... The most famous is probably the Bow-Wow Theory. This suggested language began through imitation of natural sounds. Early humans, according ...
https://theconversation.com/where-did-language-come-from-nob…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Bow-wow Theory suggests that early language originated from imitating natural sounds, · Common questions · How might the imitation of animal calls and natural ...
https://www.scribd.com/document/789985466/The-Bow-Wow-Theory
verified
Claim 9: “One famous experiment asked participants to match two nonsense words, “bouba” and “kiki”, to two shapes: one rounded and one jagged. Most people matched “bouba” with the soft shape and “kiki” with the sharp one.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and other sources describe the bouba/kiki effect, where participants consistently associate 'bouba' with rounded shapes and 'kiki' with jagged shapes.
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web search NEUTRAL — The bouba–kiki effect is one form of sound symbolism.[5]."Bo-NO-bouba-kiki: Picture-word mapping but no spontaneous sound symbolic speech-shape mapping in a language trained bonobo".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouba/kiki_effect
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web search NEUTRAL — The results revealed that, overall, participants matched the jagged line with the rolled R and the smooth line with the L sound in 88% of the online trials and 98% of in-person trials – higher rates t…
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/nov/20/people-aroun…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Bouba Kiki effect has also been studied in children as young as 21/2 years old and infants as young as 4 months old. The results show that even young children and infants have the same sound-shape…
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/secret-language-brands-unlock…
help
Claim 10: “the Yo-He-Ho Theory... suggested language emerged from rhythmic chants used during collective labour”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided or found in the search results regarding the Yo-He-Ho Theory.
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Claim 11: “In the Judeo-Christian tradition, language was a gift from God, who enabled Adam to name the animals in the Garden of Eden.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 12: “Many of these theories were given playful nicknames by the German philologist Max Müller”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and other web sources explicitly state that the German philologist Max Müller introduced these playful nicknames (such as 'bow-wow') for the theories, often as satire.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Friedrich Max Müller (German: [ˈfʁiːdʁɪç ˈmaks ˈmʏlɐ]; 6 December 1823 – 28 October 1900) was a German-born British comparative philologist and Orientalist. He was one of the founders of the Western a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Müller
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — (Friedrich) Max Müller (1823–1900) was a German and British philologist and orientalist. Max Müller may also refer to: Max Müller (Danish army officer) (1808–1884), Danish officer who served in the F…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Müller_(disambiguation)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Müller (German pronunciation: [ˈmʏlɐ] ; Czech and Slovak feminine: Müllerová) is a German-language surname, meaning 'miller' (as a profession). It is the most common family surname in Germany, Switzer…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Müller_(surname)
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 13: “The La-La Theory, linked language to music. Charles Darwin entertained the possibility that speech evolved from musical calls used in courtship and emotional expression.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 14: “In Greek mythology, the messenger god Hermes was associated with language and communication.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 15: “In the 19th century, scholars proposed a flurry of curious theories to explain how speech first emerged.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm that in the 19th century, scholars proposed various theories to explain the emergence of speech.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines. Released in beta in Novemb…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Scholar
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic u…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scholar
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Schwarzman Scholars (Chinese: 苏世民学者; pinyin: Sūshìmín Xuézhě), founded by American financier and philanthropist Stephen A. Schwarzman, is a one-year fully-funded master's degree leadership program at …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwarzman_Scholars
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 16: “The Pooh-Pooh Theory proposed that speech began with instinctive emotional cries”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm that the Pooh-Pooh Theory proposes language evolved from instinctive emotional cries.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Pooh-Pooh Theory proposed that speech began with instinctive emotional cries such as “ouch”, “oh” or perhaps less publishable exclamations uttered after stubbing a toe. According to this idea, lan…
https://theconversation.com/where-did-language-come-from-nob…
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web search NEUTRAL — The "pooh-pooh" theory proposes that language evolved from instinctive emotional expressions, such as laughter, crying, or sighing. Over time, these emotional vocalizations became more structured and …
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/unraveling-enigma-exploring-o…
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web search NEUTRAL — 4. The pooh-pooh theory. Language began with interjections, instinctive emotive cries such as oh! for surprise and ouch! for pain.That use of sound is most definitely something that can evolve, from s…
https://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/langorigins.html
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Claim 17: “Humans have developed unusually precise control over the tongue, lips and vocal tract.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.