Could Neanderthals Speak? Science Supports Argument, Adjunct Professor Says
Whether or not homo sapiens’ evolutionary cousins, the Neanderthals, possessed and utilized verbal language is an ongoing debate in the scientific community. What answers we have can be found via the converging fields of neuroscience, linguistics, primatology, and paleoanthropology—which happen to be the academic specialization of Dr. Andrey G. Vyshedskiy.
Vyshedskiy—who teaches biology to MET undergraduates—is a believer that those relatives of 600,000 years past could, in all likelihood, communicate verbally.
Featured by Gizmodo as part of a roundtable of experts tackling the question, Vyshedskiy cited a series of complimentary points of evidence in support of the argument, beginning with the presence of a unique bone common between species where by tendons the tongue, lower jaw, larynx, and throat connect, and aids in swallowing and projecting sounds.
“The similarities between Neanderthal and modern human hyoid make it likely that the position and connections of the hyoid and larynx were also similar between the two groups,” the adjunct professor, whose research explores the physical properties of the brain that unlock the human imagination, told Gizmodo.
Beyond anatomical capacity to hear certain sonic frequencies specific to voice, complex breath control abilities, and cranial structure near to the vocal cords, Vyshedskiy sees the strongest case in the presence of certain genes mutations—specifically those that impair language processing.
“The most convincing evidence for the timing of the acquisition of the modern speech apparatus is provided by DNA analysis,” he says.
Vyshedskiy teaches courses in biology at BU MET that can be counted towards Interdisciplinary Studies bachelor’s program requirements.
Visit Gizmodo to read more about the Neanderthal debate.