Addresses central questions in the evolution of language: where it came from; how and why it evolved; how it came to be culturally transmitted; and how languages diversified. This book deploys the methods and theories to probe into the origins and subsequent development of the only species that has languages.

This book addresses central questions in the evolution of language: where it came from; how and why it evolved; how it came to be culturally transmitted; and how languages diversified. It does so from the perspective of the latest work in linguistics, neuroscience, psychology, and computer science, and deploys the latest methods and theories to probe into the origins and subsequent development of the only species that has languages.

Given the range of this volume, the scope of its potential readership, and the cross-disciplinary nature of the contributions, there are significant editorial challenges to which Maggie Tallerman has risen...this is a timely volume which lives up to its aim of informing on the latest developments in what is considered to be a thriving cross-disciplinary field.