Proto-Human language

Proto-world language - also proto-world, proto-sapiens, world-primordial language - refers to a hypothetical primordial language of all languages of mankind, i.e. a language from which all language families, isolated and extinct languages known today are descended. Its existence is assumed in the theory of monoglottogenesis of all existing languages. The existence of such a primordial language can be justified historically, biologically or psychologically, but also in esotericism, religion and mythology there are statements about a common primeval language of all mankind (e.g. the story of the Tower of Babel or the concept of the Adamic language). The Out-of-Africa theory also indirectly supports the thesis of a primordial language through genetic studies, according to which Homo sapiens emerged from a very small group of humans.

However, resilient linguistic statements are hardly considered possible by most linguists because of the enormous time spans - at least 50,000 years. Therefore, it is largely undisputed among experts that statements about the properties of a proto-world language cannot be considered scientifically relevant linguistics, since they are usually not provable. Moreover, the hypothesis of the monogenesis of all languages is not provable as such. Nevertheless, there are, besides pseudo-scientific approaches (e.g. Richard Fester), also scientifically accepted attempts by the American linguists Merritt Ruhlen and John D. Bengtson to establish global word equations (etymologies).

Independent of the question of a general monogenesis of language, situations are conceivable in which a completely new language emerges independently of existing languages. The sign language of Nicaragua is possibly an example of how an inarticulate language arose naturally among deaf children of hearing parents.

Kaspar Hauser attempts: According to a story by Herodotus (Book II, Chapter 2), the Pharaoh Psammetich I in Egypt already made an attempt to find the original language of the world. He gave two newborn children to a shepherd and ordered them to be brought up in such a way that they should never hear a spoken word. In this way he wanted to find out in which language the children would first say a word. After about two years, the children would stretch out their hands in supplication and say "bekos." This meant "bread" in the Phrygian language. Pharaoh concluded that the Phrygians were an even more ancient people than the Egyptians. Salimbene of Parma, a Franciscan, told a similar story about Frederick II, the Staufer emperor. Here, however, the infants died early from lack of attention before they even spoke a word.

See also

• Macro Families
• Evolingo