Arensburg B, Tillier A M
Department of Anatomy and Anthropology, Tel-Aviv University.
Endeavour. 1991;15(1):26-8. doi: 10.1016/0160-9327(91)90084-o.
The ability to communicate by speech was a crucial step in human evolution and there has been much controversy concerning the point at which it occurred. The recent discovery at Kebara of a well-preserved hyoid bone some 60,000 years old suggests that Neanderthal man had developed the anatomical structures necessary to articulate words. This in itself does not prove that such articulation occurred. But contributory evidence, such as endocranial casts indicates that the necessary brain differentiation had also developed. Further, what we know of the social organisation of Neanderthals suggests that some form of communication by speech was necessary.
通过言语进行交流的能力是人类进化过程中的关键一步，关于其出现的时间点一直存在诸多争议。最近在凯巴拉发现了一块保存完好、约有6万年历史的舌骨，这表明尼安德特人已经发育出了清晰发音所需的解剖结构。但这本身并不能证明这种发音确实发生过。不过，诸如颅内模型等辅助证据表明，必要的大脑分化也已经形成。此外，我们对尼安德特人社会组织的了解表明，某种形式的言语交流是必要的。
