Re: Why grammar is so complex a subject

Cian Ross wrote:
> On Thu, 2005-12-29 at 14:57, R A Brown wrote:
[snip]

[first hominids]
>>But, yes, I
>>do think their social communication had sophistication.
>
>
> I'm not sure how nearly modern hominids would lack that, if they had so
> many things so otherwise like Cro Magnon humans.  Neanderthals did
> burials, supported the unwell...and yet their language was some sort of
> minimal thing?  That just doesn't fit well for me.
Quite so - it doesn't fit well for me either. The wikipedia reference
Philip Jonsson gave is interesting. "A recent study conducted on the
Neanderthal hyoid found that due to the physical characteristics of
Neanderthals and the fact that their larynx would have been stouter than
that of modern man, the average note emitted by Neanderthals would have
been high pitched and sharper than that of modern man, contrary to the
media stereotype of Neanderthals having ape-like grunts."

Also:
"Neanderthals performed a sophisticated set of tasks normally associated
with humans alone. For example, they constructed complex shelters,
controlled fire, and skinned animals. Particularly intriguing is a
hollowed-out bear femur with four holes in the diatonic scale
deliberately bored into it. "

Such a sophisticated set of tasks is carried out with unsophisticated
grunts and gestures? No, it doesn't fit well for me.

--
Ray
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