How Language Began
The Story of Humanity's Greatest Invention
A nonfiction work proposing a novel theory that language evolved gradually from iconic gestures and tool-making, culminating in symbolic communication with Homo erectus. It challenges long-held linguistic orthodoxies by integrating anthropology, neuroscience, and field research.
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Ranked #679 of 1942 · 330 pages · Published 2017 · Nonfiction / Linguistics
Mentioned 1× on The Joe Rogan Experience across 1 episode, most recently on Aug 27, 2026.
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Every episode where this book came up, newest first. Timestamps are approximate; each mention links to its source.
Mentioned by Daniel Everett · 00:39:21 · ▶︎ Watch this moment on YouTube (approximate) · Source: Official episode description (podcast RSS), Transcript (podscripts.co)
Everett refers to his book How Language Began while discussing Homo erectus and boat-building.
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Data last updated · Report a mistake · How it works: mentions are pulled from public transcripts and episode descriptions, partly with AI-assisted extraction, so details and timestamps can be off.
Book data: ISBN 9780871407955. Page count from Open Library (median of editions). Cover via Open Library Covers.