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The seeds of speech : language origin and evolution / Jean Aitchison.
Author
Aitchison, Jean, 1938-
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Format
Book
Language
English
Published/Created
Cambridge [England] ; New York, NY, USA : Cambridge University Press, 1996.
Description
xii, 281 pages ; 21 cm.
Availability
Copies in the Library
Location
Call Number
Status
Location Service
Notes
ReCAP - Remote Storage
P116 .A38 1996
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Details
Subject(s)
Language and languages
—
Origin
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Language acquisition
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Linguistic change
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Series
Cambridge approaches to linguistics.
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Summary note
Human language is a weird communication system: it has more in common with birdsong than with the calls of other primates. In this clear and non-technical overview, Jean Aitchison explores why it evolved and how it developed. She likens the search to a vast prehistoric jigsaw puzzle, in which numerous fragments of evidence must be assembled, some external to language, such as evolution theory and animal communication; others internal, including child language, pidgins and creoles, and language change.
She explains why language is so strange, outlines recent theories about its origin, and discusses possible paths of evolution. Finally, she considers what holds all languages together, and prevents them from becoming unlearnably different from one another.
Bibliographic references
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents
1. A natural curiosity: How did language begin?
2. A peculiar habit: What is language for?
3. The bother at Babel: Why do languages differ so much?
4. Distinct duties: Is language an independent skill?
5. The family tree: The evolutionary background
6. A devious mind: The basic requirements
7. Broken air: Inherited ingredients
8. Small beginnings: First steps
9. The second word: The emergence of rules
10. The tower of speech: Expansion
11. Time travelling: Extra attachments
12. Rebuilding on the high seas: Keeping going
13. The widening circle: Moving outwards
14. The hidden core: The hunt for universals
15. The real magician: Ruling the rules
16. Unweaving the rainbow: Separating the strands
17. The endless stair: Past and future.
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ISBN
0521462460
0521467934 (pbk.)
LCCN
95047738
OCLC
33666152
RCP
C - S
Statement on language in description
Princeton University Library aims to describe library materials in a manner that is respectful to the individuals and communities who create, use, and are represented in the collections we manage.
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The seeds of speech : language origin and evolution / Jean Aitchison.
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