Mark Pagel: How language transformed humanity

Translator: Ḥafiḍ BENḤAḌRIYA Reviewer: Ḥafiḍ BENḤAḌRIYA

Each of you possesses

Kul waḥed fikum ɛendu

the most powerful, dangerous and subversive trait

el-sima el-mejjehda, el-waɛra, elli tzeɛzeɛ kter (subversive)

that natural selection has ever devised.

w elli kkewnu el-texyar el-ṭabiɛi (Natural Selection) l el-ḥin.

It's a piece of neural audio technology

Hiya ṭerf ntaɛ teknolojya, f el-ɛṣab w el-smaɛ,

for rewiring other people's minds.

terbeṭ ma bin el-mxuxa ntaɛ el-nas.

I'm talking about your language, of course,

Bayna belli rani nehḍer ɛla el-qudra ntaɛ el-luġa,

because it allows you to implant a thought from your mind

laxeṭerš hiya elli txellikum teġġersu fekra men ɛqelkum

directly into someone else's mind,

nišan f el-ɛqel ntaɛ waḥdaxer,

and they can attempt to do the same to you,

w yeqqedru huma tanik ysseyu ydirulek nefs el-ši,

without either of you having to perform surgery.

bla tešraṭ xdama wella Sidi Ɛebbaz.

Instead, when you speak,

F had el-syaq, ki tkun tehḍer,

you're actually using a form of telemetry

rak testeɛmel, f el-waqeɛ, waḥed el-škel ntaɛ el-telemetri (nqil bla-xiṭ)

not so different

mši mextalef bezzaf

from the remote control device for your television.

ɛla el-telekomand ntaɛ el-tilivizyu ntaɛek.

It's just that, whereas that device

Kima n' hak! Win el-mašina

relies on pulses of infrared light,

tkun qayma ɛla el-bɛit ntaɛ ḍḍew teḥt-ḥmer ('infraruj),

your language relies on pulses,

el-luġa ntaɛkum tkun qayma ɛla el-bɛit

discrete pulses, of sound.

el-bɛit, bla smir, ntaɛ el-ḥess.

And just as you use the remote control device

W ġir kima testeɛmel el-telekomand

to alter the internal settings of your television

beš tbeddel el-ɛdadat el-dexlaniya ntaɛ el-tilivizyu ntaɛek

to suit your mood,

ɛla ḥsab ma teršeqlek,

you use your language

testeɛmel el-luġa ntaɛek

to alter the settings inside someone else's brain

beš tbeddel el-ɛdadat f daxel ɛqel bnadem

to suit your interests.

ɛla ḥsab el-fayda ntaɛek.

Languages are genes talking,

El-luġat hiya jinat tehḍer (mehdara),

getting things that they want.

teddi el-ṣwaleḥ elli baġyethum

And just imagine the sense of wonder in a baby

W, hnaya, ġir txxeylu el-ɛjeb fi keš ġuryan

when it first discovers that, merely by uttering a sound,

ki yetkaka l had el-ši w yebda ylaġi keš ḥess

it can get objects to move across a room

yxelli el-ṣwaleḥ yetḥerku fi keš bit:

as if by magic,

tqul kelli keš ɛefsa ntaɛ sḥur -

and maybe even into its mouth.

w twali ḥetta yweṣṣelhum l fummu.

Now language's subversive power

Ḍerwek, el-qudra ntaɛ el-luġa f el-tzeɛziɛ

has been recognized throughout the ages

ɛtarfu biha, mɛa el-ɛhud:

in censorship, in books you can't read,

B sebba't el-ɛessa (el-raqaba), kayen ktuba ma tnejjemš teqrahum.

phrases you can't use

ɛbarat (hedrat) ma teqderš testeɛmelhum

and words you can't say.

w kelmat ma tnejjemš tqulhum.

In fact, the Tower of Babel story in the Bible

F el-waqeɛ, el-ḥkaya dyal el-burj ntaɛ Babel f el-'Injil

is a fable and warning

ḥiya ḥejjaya w tenbih

about the power of language.

ɛla el-quwwa ntaɛ el-luġa.

According to that story, early humans developed the conceit

Ɛla ḥsab had el-ḥkaya, el-bniyadem el-lwala weṣlu l el-fhama

that, by using their language to work together,

belli mɛa el-stiɛmal ntaɛ el-luġa beš yexxedmu mɛa beɛḍ,

they could build a tower

yeqqedru yebniw burj

that would take them all the way to heaven.

yweṣṣelhum, qbala, l el-sma.

Now God, angered at this attempt to usurp his power,

Temmatik, 'Allah zɛef men had el-muḥawala beš ytṣṣelṭu ɛlih,

destroyed the tower,

ḥeṭṭem el-burj,

and then to ensure

w beš yetyeqqen

that it would never be rebuilt,

belli ma yɛawduš yebniweh,

he scattered the people by giving them different languages --

ferket el-nas ki ɛṭalhum luġat mextalfa --

confused them by giving them different languages.

xelleṭhalhum ki ɛṭalhum luġat mextalfa.

And this leads to the wonderful irony

W hada yweṣṣel l el-tmesxira el-hayla

that our languages exist to prevent us from communicating.

belli el-luġat kayna beš ma txellinaš netwaṣlu.

Even today,

Ḥetta el-yum,

we know that there are words we cannot use,

ɛla balna belli kayen kelmat ma nnejmuš nesteɛmluhum,

phrases we cannot say,

jumel ma neqqedruš nquluhum,

because if we do so,

laxaṭerš 'ida qulnahum,

we might be accosted, jailed,

yeqqedru yḍayquna, yeḥḥebsuna,

or even killed.

w ḥetta yeqqetluna.

And all of this from a puff of air

W gaɛ hada men nefxa't nefs

emanating from our mouths.

texrej men fwamna.

Now all this fuss about a single one of our traits

Šuftu! Gaɛ had el-haraj ɛla sima waḥda m el-simat ntaweɛna

tells us there's something worth explaining.

yxellina nqulu belli, ṣeḥḥ, kayen ḥaja, hnaya, testahel el-tefsir.

And that is how and why

W hadi hiya kifeš w ɛleš

did this remarkable trait evolve,

tṭewret had el-sima el-metmeyza,

and why did it evolve

w ɛlah tṭewret

only in our species?

ġir ɛend el-jnas ntaweɛna?

Now it's a little bit of a surprise

El-ḥaṣul, hadi ḥeyya tdehheš šwiya

that to get an answer to that question,

win beš nelqaw keš jwab l had el-swal,

we have to go to tool use

lazem ɛlina nruḥu l el-stiɛmal ntaɛ el-duzan

in the chimpanzees.

ɛend el-šempanziyat.

Now these chimpanzees are using tools,

Had el-šempanziyat yesteɛmlu duzan,

and we take that as a sign of their intelligence.

w ḥna ɛendna hadi kelli 'išara ɛla el-ɛqel ntaɛhum.

But if they really were intelligent,

Beṣṣaḥ, la kanu ṣeḥḥ ɛendhum f el-ras,

why would they use a stick to extract termites from the ground

ɛlah yesteɛmlu meṭreg beš yxxewšu ɛla el-termit m el-'erḍ

rather than a shovel?

bdal men meɛwel?

And if they really were intelligent,

W la kanu ṣeḥḥ ɛendhum f el-ras,

why would they crack open nuts with a rock?

ɛlah yhhersu gergaɛ w yḥelluh b keš ḥajra?

Why wouldn't they just go to a shop and buy a bag of nuts

Ɛlah ma yruḥuš l keš ḥanut w yešru škara ntaɛ gergaɛ

that somebody else had already cracked open for them?

elli keš waḥed hhersu men qbel?

Why not? I mean, that's what we do.

Ɛlah lla? Ki tšuf: Dak huwa weš rana ndiru.

Now the reason the chimpanzees don't do that

Ḍerwek: Ɛlah el-šempanzi ma ydirš kima n' hak

is that they lack what psychologists and anthropologists call

meɛnatu belli rahum naqṣin weš el-xubara ntaɛ ɛilm el-nefs w el-'antropolojya ysemmuh

social learning.

el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi.

They seem to lack the ability

Yban belli rahum mexṣuṣin qudra

to learn from others

beš yetɛelmu men ġirhum

by copying or imitating

b el-nsix w el-teqlid

or simply watching.

wella, sahel mahel, b el-tefraj.

As a result,

W f el-tali,

they can't improve on others' ideas

ma yeqqedruš yetsegmu b el-fkar ntaɛ el-ġir

or learn from others' mistakes --

wella yetɛelmu m el-ġelṭat ntaɛ el-'uxrin --

benefit from others' wisdom.

yestfadu m el-ḥekma ntaɛ el-'uxrin.

And so they just do the same thing

W hakda telqahum rahum ydiru dat el-ši

over and over and over again.

men dara w jdid w zid.

In fact, we could go away for a million years and come back

F el-waqeɛ, neqqedru nruḥu melyun ɛam w nwellu

and these chimpanzees would be doing the same thing

w had el-šempanziyat rahum ɛad ydiru dat el-ši,

with the same sticks for the termites

b dat el-mṭareg beš yxxerju el-termit

and the same rocks to crack open the nuts.

w dat el-hjer beš yḥellu el-gergaɛ.

Now this may sound arrogant, or even full of hubris.

Ḍerwek, had el-ši yban kelli tekebbur wella keš heḍra't zux.

How do we know this?

Kifeš neɛɛerfu had el-ši?

Because this is exactly what our ancestors, the Homo erectus, did.

Laxaṭerš hada huwa, b el-dat, weš jdudna, el-Homo erectus, kanu ydiru.

These upright apes

Had el-qruda elli yeqqedru yewweqfu

evolved on the African savanna

ɛašu f el-savanna ntaɛ Friqya

about two million years ago,

hadi qrib zuj mlayen ɛam men qbel,

and they made these splendid hand axes

w ṣenɛu had el-šefrat el-mxxeyrin

that fit wonderfully into your hands.

elli yetwalmu ɛalama mɛa yeddikum.

But if we look at the fossil record,

Beṣṣaḥ la tmeɛɛenna f el-baqaya ntaɛ el-ḥjer,

we see that they made the same hand axe

nšufu belli ṣenɛu qrib dat el-šefrat ntaɛ el-yeddin

over and over and over again

men dara w jdid w zid

for one million years.

l melyun ɛam.

You can follow it through the fossil record.

Teqqdru ttebɛuha ɛla ḥsab el-baqaya ntaɛ el-ḥjer.

Now if we make some guesses about how long Homo erectus lived,

Ḍerwek, lakan nxemmu šwiya šḥal ɛaš el-Homo erectus,

what their generation time was,

weš kan weqt jilhum,

that's about 40,000 generations

hada ysawi qrib 40.000 jil

of parents to offspring, and other individuals watching,

m el-waldin l wladhum, w ɛibad waḥduxrin yetfferju,

in which that hand axe didn't change.

bla ma had el-šefra tetbeddel.

It's not even clear

El-ḥala rahi ɛad mši bayna

that our very close genetic relatives, the Neanderthals,

belli el-qrab lina men jiha't el-jinat, el-Nyandertal,

had social learning.

kan ɛendhum teɛlam 'ijtimaɛi.

Sure enough, their tools were more complicated

Yaqin kima yelzem, el-duzan ntaweɛhum kanu mɛeqdin kter

than those of Homo erectus,

ɛla el-duzan ntaɛ Homo erectus,

but they too showed very little change

beṣṣaḥ huma tanik bbeynu ġir quzza tebdal

over the 300,000 years or so

f mudda't 300.000 ɛam wella qrib

that those species, the Neanderthals,

belli had el-jnas, el-Nyandertal,

lived in Eurasia.

kanu ɛayšin f Örasya.

Okay, so what this tells us

Ṣaḥḥa, weš yeɛnilna hada

is that, contrary to the old adage,

huwa belli, b xlaf el-mtel el-qdim,

"monkey see, monkey do,"

"el-šadi yšuf w el-šadi ydir,"

the surprise really is

El-ḥaja elli tdehheš hiya

that all of the other animals

belli gaɛ el-hwayeš el-'uxrin

really cannot do that -- at least not very much.

ma ynnejmuš ṣaḥḥ ydiru had el-ši -- ɛla el-'aqqel, mši bezzaf.

And even this picture

W ḥetta had el-teṣwira

has the suspicious taint of being rigged about it --

tban kelli meġšuša --

something from a Barnum & Bailey circus.

ḥaja jaya men Sirk Barnum & Bailey.

But by comparison,

Beṣṣaḥ, b el-mqarna,

we can learn.

neqqedru netɛɛelmu.

We can learn by watching other people

Neqqedru netɛɛelmu ki netfferju f el-nas el-'uxrin

and copying or imitating

w ki nnesxu w nqqeldu

what they can do.

weš yeqqedru ydiru.

We can then choose, from among a range of options,

Neqqedru, temmatik, nxxeyru, men bin ṣeff ntaɛ xtiyarat,

the best one.

el-mxeyyer fihum.

We can benefit from others' ideas.

Neqqedru nestfadu m el-fkarat

We can build on their wisdom.

Neqqedru nebniw ɛla el-rzana ntaɛhum.

And as a result, our ideas do accumulate,

W f el-tali, el-fkarat ntaweɛna tetɛerrem,

and our technology progresses.

w el-teknolojya ntaɛna tetqeddem.

And this cumulative cultural adaptation,

W had el-mwalma ntaɛ el-taqafa b el-teɛram,

as anthropologists call

kima ysemmuha el-mexteṣṣin ntaɛ el-'antropolojya:

this accumulation of ideas,

el-teɛram ntaɛ el-fkarat,

is responsible for everything around you

hiya el-mes'ula ɛla kul ši, mdawer bik

in your bustling and teeming everyday lives.

fi ḥyatek ntaɛ kul yum, el-mɛɛemra ṣadaɛat w haraj

I mean the world has changed out of all proportion

Rani neqṣed belli el-ɛalem tbeddel men kul jiha

to what we would recognize

ɛla elli nnejmu neɛɛerfu ɛlih

even 1,000 or 2,000 years ago.

hadi 1.000 wella 2.000 ɛam.

And all of this because of cumulative cultural adaptation.

W gaɛ hada ɛla jal el-mwalma el-taqafiya elli tetɛerrem mɛa el-weqt.

The chairs you're sitting in, the lights in this auditorium,

el-krasa elli rakum qaɛdin ɛlihum, el-ḍwaw f had el-mesmeɛ,

my microphone, the iPads and iPods that you carry around with you --

el-mikrofon ntaɛi, el-iPad w el-iPod elli rakum rafdinhum --

all are a result

kul ši natija

of cumulative cultural adaptation.

ntaɛ mwalma taqafiya metɛerma.

Now to many commentators,

Ḍerwek, l šḥal men waḥed yebġi yɛelleq,

cumulative cultural adaptation, or social learning,

el-mwalwa el-taqafiya el-metɛɛerma wella el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi

is job done, end of story.

hiya xedma mefriya: el-tali ntaɛ el-ḥkaya.

Our species can make stuff,

El-jnas ntaweɛna ynnejmu yeṣṣenɛu ṣwaleḥ,

therefore we prospered in a way that no other species has.

el-ši elli yxellina nqulu belli tqeddemna b sira ma ɛerfethaš jnas waḥduxra.

In fact, we can even make the "stuff of life" --

F el-waqeɛ, neqqedru ḥetta neṣṣenɛu "ṣwaleḥ el-denya" --

as I just said, all the stuff around us.

kima rani ɛad qult, gaɛ el-ṣwaleḥ elli meddawrin bina.

But in fact, it turns out

Beṣṣaḥ f el-ṣeḥḥ, yban

that some time around 200,000 years ago,

belli hadi mudda, qrib 200.000 sna men qbel

when our species first arose

ki banet el-jnas ntaweɛna

and acquired social learning,

w kesbu el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi,

that this was really the beginning of our story,

belli hadi hiya el-bedya ntaɛ el-tarix dyalna,

not the end of our story.

w mši el-nihaya ntaɛ tarixna.

Because our acquisition of social learning

Laxaṭerš el-ksib ɛendna ntaɛ el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi

would create a social and evolutionary dilemma,

ġadi yexleq muɛḍila 'ijtimaɛiya w men jiha't el-teṭwar,

the resolution of which, it's fair to say,

w ḥelha, neqqedru nqulu,

would determine not only the future course of our psychology,

yeqder yqerrer mši ġir el-sira f el-mustaqbel ntaɛ el-nefsiya ntaɛna

but the future course of the entire world.

beṣṣaḥ gana el-sira f el-mustaqbel dyal el-ɛalem b kmalu.

And most importantly for this,

W elli yhemm kter hnaya,

it'll tell us why we have language.

elli ywajebna ɛlah ɛendna luġa.

And the reason that dilemma arose

W el-sebba elli xellat had el-muɛḍila tban

is, it turns out, that social learning is visual theft.

hiya belli, ɛla ḥsab el-šufa, el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi ma huwa ġir sriqa b el-ɛin.

If I can learn by watching you,

Lakan neqder netɛellem ki netferrej fik,

I can steal your best ideas,

neqder nexwen el-fkar el-mxeyrin ntawɛek,

and I can benefit from your efforts,

w neqder nestfad m el-juhud ntawɛek,

without having to put in the time and energy that you did

bla ma nḍeyyeɛ nefs el-weqt w el-jehd elli ṣrefthum

into developing them.

beš tṭewwerhum.

If I can watch which lure you use to catch a fish,

La qdert nšuf weš men genj steɛmelt beš teqbeṭ ḥutta,

or I can watch how you flake your hand axe

wella nšuf kifeš tsennen el-šaqur ntaɛek

to make it better,

beš ywelli xir,

or if I follow you secretly to your mushroom patch,

wella la tebbeɛtek l jnin'tek dyal el-fuggaɛ,

I can benefit from your knowledge and wisdom and skills,

neqder nestfad m el-meɛrifa, el-rzana w el-ṣenɛat ntawɛek,

and maybe even catch that fish

w twali ḥetta nṣeyyed hadik el-ḥutta

before you do.

qbel ma tṣeyyedha.

Social learning really is visual theft.

El-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi huwa, f el-ṣeḥḥ, sriqa b el-šufa

And in any species that acquired it,

W ɛend el-jnas elli kesbet had el-ši,

it would behoove you

xirlek

to hide your best ideas,

txebbi el-fkar ntawɛek el-mxeyrin,

lest somebody steal them from you.

beš ma yexwenhumlek ḥetta waḥed.

And so some time around 200,000 years ago,

Amala, hadi waḥed 200.000 ɛam men qbel,

our species confronted this crisis.

qablet el-jnas ntaweɛna had el-'ezma.

And we really had only two options

W kanu ɛendna ġir zuj xyarat

for dealing with the conflicts

beš netɛamlu mɛa el-mnawšat

that visual theft would bring.

elli ybanu mɛa had el-sriqa b el-šufa.

One of those options

Waḥda men had el-xyarat

was that we could have retreated

hiya ki nenɛazlu

into small family groups.

fi mejmuɛat ntaɛ ɛaylat ṣġar.

Because then the benefits of our ideas and knowledge

Laxaṭerš el-fayda m el-fkar w el-meɛrifa ntaɛna

would flow just to our relatives.

tebqa tdur ġir ɛend ḥbabna.

Had we chosen this option,

Zeɛma rana xeyyerna had el-ši,

sometime around 200,000 years ago,

hadi ši 200.000 ɛam men qbel,

we would probably still be living like the Neanderthals were

la kunna ɛla ḥsab el-šufa ɛayšin kima kannu el-Nyandertal

when we first entered Europe 40,000 years ago.

ki dxelna el-xeṭra el-'ewla l el-'Örop hadi 40.000 ɛam men qbel.

And this is because in small groups

W hada laxaṭerš fi mejmuɛat ṣġar,

there are fewer ideas, there are fewer innovations.

el-fkar tkun qlila, el-tejdad ykun qlil.

And small groups are more prone to accidents and bad luck.

W el-mejmuɛat el-ṣġar qrab m el-wqiɛat w el-zher el-menḥus.

So if we'd chosen that path,

Amala, la kan xeyyerna had el-ṭriq,

our evolutionary path would have led into the forest --

lakan el-ṭriq ntaɛ el-teṭwar dána l el-ġaba --

and been a short one indeed.

w lakan qṣir, ṣeḥḥ w ṣḥiḥ.

The other option we could choose

El-texyar el-zawej elli qeddina nwasiweh

was to develop the systems of communication

huwa ki ṭṭewwerna el-ɛefsat ntaɛ el-mwaṣla

that would allow us to share ideas

elli semḥet lina beš netqasmu el-fkarat

and to cooperate amongst others.

w netɛawnu mɛa el-ġir.

Choosing this option would mean

El-texyar ntaɛ had el-ṭriq yeqder yeɛni

that a vastly greater fund of accumulated knowledge and wisdom

belli mekseb hayel b el-bezzaf nta meɛrifa w rzana metɛerma

would become available to any one individual

yeqder ykun metwafer ɛend kul waḥed

than would ever arise from within an individual family

kter men ya la kanet ɛend ɛayla waḥda

or an individual person on their own.

wella keš bnadem b rasu.

Well, we chose the second option,

Amala, xeyyerna el-xyar el-zawej,

and language is the result.

w el-luġa hiya el-natija.

Language evolved to solve the crisis

tṭewret el-luġa beš tḥell el-'ezma

of visual theft.

ntaɛ el-sriqa b el-ɛin.

Language is a piece of social technology

El-luġa hiya ṭerf ntaɛ teknolojya 'ijtimaɛiya

for enhancing the benefits of cooperation --

beš tɛezzez el-fayda ntaɛ el-mɛawna --

for reaching agreements, for striking deals

beš newweṣlu l mufahamat, w nefriw 'afirat

and for coordinating our activities.

w beš nneḍmu el-ṣenɛat dyawelna.

And you can see that, in a developing society

W teqder tšuf had el-ši, fi mujtamaɛ yetqeddem

that was beginning to acquire language,

elli bda yekseb el-luġa,

not having language

ki ma tkunš ɛendek luġa

would be a like a bird without wings.

meɛnatu kelli zaweš bla jenḥin.

Just as wings open up this sphere of air

Ġir kima el-jenḥin yššerɛu el-sma

for birds to exploit,

beš el-zwaweš yelqaw ġerdhum,

language opened up the sphere of cooperation

el-luġa ššerɛet el-majal ntaɛ el-mɛawna

for humans to exploit.

beš yestfadu el-bniyadem.

And we take this utterly for granted,

W hadi ɛendna mefruġ menha,

because we're a species that is so at home with language,

laxaṭerš ḥna jnas nelqaw ġerdna mɛa el-luġa,

but you have to realize

beṣṣaḥ lazemlek tetkaka

that even the simplest acts of exchange that we engage in

belli ḥetta f el-mubadalat ntaweɛna labġa el-sahlin gaɛ

are utterly dependent upon language.

mertabṭa, b kmalha, b el-luġa.

And to see why, consider two scenarios

W beš nšufu ɛlaš, neɛtabru b had el-zuj senaryoyat

from early in our evolution.

m el-bedya ntaɛ tarixna.

Let's imagine that you are really good

Xelliwna netxxeylu belli ntuma šaṭrin

at making arrowheads,

f el-ṣniɛa ntaɛ risan el-fličat,

but you're hopeless at making the wooden shafts

beṣṣaḥ fašlin f el-ṣniɛa ntaɛ el-mṭareg dyal el-xšeb

with the flight feathers attached.

merbuṭa b riš el-ṭir.

Two other people you know are very good at making the wooden shafts,

Kayen zuj ɛibad šaṭrin f el-ṣniɛ ntaɛ mṭareg el-xšeb,

but they're hopeless at making the arrowheads.

beṣṣaḥ mbuqlin f el-ṣniɛ ntaɛ risan el-fličat.

So what you do is --

Amala weš ydiru --

one of those people has not really acquired language yet.

waḥed men hadu zuj ɛibad ɛad ma ksebš el-luġa ntaɛ ṣeḥḥ.

And let's pretend the other one is good at language skills.

W xelliwna neftarḍu belli el-'axer ɛendu maharat mlaḥ f el-luġa.

So what you do one day is you take a pile of arrowheads,

Amala weš tdiru? F keš nhar teddiw rezma ntaɛ risan el-fličat,

and you walk up to the one that can't speak very well,

w truḥu ɛend dak el-seyyed elli ma yehderš mliḥ,

and you put the arrowheads down in front of him,

w tḥeṭṭu risan el-fličat quddamu,

hoping that he'll get the idea that you want to trade your arrowheads

w ntuma dayrin fi balkum belli ġadi yefhem belli rak baġi tberrez risan el-fličat dyawlek

for finished arrows.

b fličat wafyin.

But he looks at the pile of arrowheads, thinks they're a gift,

Beṣṣaḥ weš ydir: yexzer f el-rezma ntaɛ el-fličat, yeḥsebhum hdiya,

picks them up, smiles and walks off.

yerfedhum, yetbessem w yruḥ.

Now you pursue this guy, gesticulating.

Ḍerwek, rana nšufu f had el-ɛebd w huwa yetzeɛbel.

A scuffle ensues and you get stabbed

Ynuḍ dwas w yeddeġruk

with one of your own arrowheads.

b waḥda men haduk el-risan n' el-fličat.

Okay, now replay this scene now, and you're approaching the one who has language.

Ṣeḥḥa! Ḍerwek, txeylu had el-leqṭa win tqerreb m el-seyyed elli yeqder yetwaṣel b el-luġa.

You put down your arrowheads and say,

Tḥeṭṭ risan n' el-fličat w tqul,

"I'd like to trade these arrowheads for finished arrows. I'll split you 50/50."

Madabiya nberrez had el-risan n' el-fličat b fličat wafyin. Netqasem mɛak 50/50.

The other one says, "Fine. Looks good to me.

El-'axer ywajeb, "Ġaya. Tbanli mliḥa.

We'll do that."

Xellina nefriwha."

Now the job is done.

W el-xedma meqḍiya.

Once we have language,

Ġir tkun ɛendna el-luġa,

we can put our ideas together and cooperate

nlemmu el-fkarat ntaweɛna w netɛawnu

to have a prosperity

beš ḥyatna twelli xir

that we couldn't have before we acquired it.

elli ma kanetš teqder tkun lakan ma kunnaš kasbinha (el-luġa).

And this is why our species

W hadi hiya ɛlah el-jnas ntaweɛna

has prospered around the world

tṭewret f kul muḍeɛ f el-ɛalem

while the rest of the animals

bidma, el-hwayeš el-'uxrin

sit behind bars in zoos, languishing.

rahi qaɛda tetkessel mur el-ḥdid ntaɛ jnina't el-wḥuš.

That's why we build space shuttles and cathedrals

Ɛla biha rana nebniw merkabat n' el-sma w el-katedra'iyat

while the rest of the world sticks sticks into the ground

win el-baqi ntaɛ el-ɛalem rahu ɛad laṣeq fi el-'erḍ

to extract termites.

yxewweš ɛla el-nmel el-byeḍ.

All right, if this view of language

Nišan, lakan had el-šufa l el-luġa

and its value

w qimetha

in solving the crisis of visual theft is true,

tɛawen beš tḥell el-'ezma dyal el-sriqa b el-šufa hiya ḥeqqaniya,

any species that acquires it

'eyy jens yeksebha

should show an explosion of creativity and prosperity.

yaqin yeɛref zerda ntaɛ 'ibdaɛ w zyada't el-xir.

And this is exactly what the archeological record shows.

W hada huwa b el-dat weš el-tesjilat n' el-'arkeolojya ybeynu.

If you look at our ancestors,

La šuftu l el-nas el-sabqin,

the Neanderthals and the Homo erectus, our immediate ancestors,

El-Nyandertal w el-Homo Erectus, elli sebquna swaswa,

they're confined to small regions of the world.

kanu meḥṣurin fi blayeṣ ṣġiwrin m el-ɛalem.

But when our species arose

Beṣṣaḥ ki banu el-jnas ntaweɛna

about 200,000 years ago,

hadi ši 200.000 ɛam,

sometime after that we quickly walked out of Africa

men beɛd ġir ma xrejna men Friqya

and spread around the entire world,

w tferketna f el-ɛalem b kmalu,

occupying nearly every habitat on Earth.

steɛmerna kul muḍeɛ qabel l el-suknan fuq el-'erḍ.

Now whereas other species are confined

Ḍerwek, win jnas waḥduxrin rahum meḥṣurin

to places that their genes adapt them to,

fi blayeṣ twalmet el-jinat ntaweɛhum mɛaha,

with social learning and language,

b el-teɛlam el-'ijtimaɛi w el-luġa,

we could transform the environment

nejjemna nḥewlu weš meddawer bina

to suit our needs.

ɛla ḥsab ma nestḥeqqu.

And so we prospered in a way

W hakdatik, tṭewwerna b waḥed el-ṣifa

that no other animal has.

elli ma tṭewwert biha ḥetta hayša.

Language really is

El-luġa, ṣeḥḥ, hiya

the most potent trait that has ever evolved.

hiya el-sima el-mejjehda gaɛ elli tṭewret.

It is the most valuable trait we have

Had el-sima hiya elli b qimetha kter ɛendna

for converting new lands and resources

beš nsegmu trab jdid w mawarid

into more people and their genes

beš yesteqblu ɛibad kter, huma w jinathum

that natural selection has ever devised.

elli txxeylletha el-ṭabiɛa ɛend el-texyar.

Language really is

El-luġa hiya ṣeḥḥ

the voice of our genes.

el-gerzi ntaɛ el-jinat ntaweɛna.

Now having evolved language, though,

W ḍerwek ki el-luġa tṭewret,

we did something peculiar,

rana derna ḥeyya mši menwali,

even bizarre.

w ḥetta ġriba

As we spread out around the world,

Ki ntašerna f el-ɛalem,

we developed thousands of different languages.

ṭewwerna šḥal men 'elf luġa mextalfa

Currently, there are about seven or 8,000

Ḍerwek, rahum kaynin waḥed qrib 7 wella 8.000

different languages spoken on Earth.

luġa mextalfa, mehdura fuq el-'erḍ.

Now you might say, well, this is just natural.

Ḍerwek teqder tqulu: Ṣaḥḥa, hadi haja bayna belli ɛadiya.

As we diverge, our languages are naturally going to diverge.

Ki netbaɛdu, bayna belli el-luġat ntaweɛna tanik yetbaɛdu.

But the real puzzle and irony

Beṣṣaḥ el-ḥejjaya w el-tgenbir

is that the greatest density of different languages on Earth

huwa belli el-terkiz el-kbir ntaɛ el-luġat el-mextalfin fuq el-'erḍ

is found where people are most tightly packed together.

nelqawha win el-nas ɛayšin quddam beɛḍhum beɛḍ.

If we go to the island of Papua New Guinea,

La mšina l el-jazira ntaɛ Papwa Gineya el-Jdida,

we can find about 800 to 1,000

neqqedru nelqaw qrib 800 l 1.000

distinct human languages,

luġa bašariya metmayza,

different human languages,

luġa bašariya mextalfa,

spoken on that island alone.

mehdurin f had el-jazira waḥedha.

There are places on that island

Kayen blayeṣ fuq had el-jazira

where you can encounter a new language

win teqder telqa luġa jdida

every two or three miles.

kul zuj wella telt myal.

Now, incredible as this sounds,

Ḍerwek, ḥetta lukan banet muġriba,

I once met a Papuan man, and I asked him if this could possibly be true.

xeṭra, tlaqit mɛa seyyed papwani w seqsitu lakan had el-ši ṣeḥḥ.

And he said to me, "Oh no.

W qal-li: "Eyyuh! Lla.

They're far closer together than that."

Huma qrab kter men hak."

And it's true; there are places on that island

W hada ṣeḥḥ; kayen blayeṣ f had el-jazira

where you can encounter a new language in under a mile.

win tnejjem telqa luġa jdida f qell men mil.

And this is also true of some remote oceanic islands.

W hada ṣeḥḥ yenṭabeq tanik mɛa waḥd el-juzur bɛad ntaɛ el-Muḥiṭ

And so it seems that we use our language,

W hakda, ɛla ḥsab el-šufa, rana nesteɛmlu el-luġa ntaɛna,

not just to cooperate,

mši ġir beš netɛawnu,

but to draw rings around our cooperative groups

beṣṣaḥ tanik beš nmeyzu dewwirat ɛla el-mejmuɛat dyalna win netɛawnu

and to establish identities,

w nebniw hawiyat

and perhaps to protect our knowledge and wisdom and skills

w waqila beš neḥmiw el-meɛrifa, el-rzana w el-ṣenɛat ntaweɛna

from eavesdropping from outside.

m el-qerɛajiya ntaɛ berra.

And we know this

W ɛla balna b had el-ši

because when we study different language groups

laxaṭerš ki neqraw ɛla mejmuɛat dyal luġat mextalfa

and associate them with their cultures,

w nlemmuhum mɛa el-taqafat ntaweɛhum,

we see that different languages

nšufu belli el-luġat el-mextalfa

slow the flow of ideas between groups.

tteqqel el-sira ntaɛ el-fkarat bin el-mejmuɛat.

They slow the flow of technologies.

Tteqqel el-sira ntaɛ el-teknolojyat.

And they even slow the flow of genes.

W ḥetta yteqqel el-sira ntaɛ el-jinat.

Now I can't speak for you,

Ḍerwek, ma neqderš nehder ɛlikum,

but it seems to be the case

beṣṣaḥ, ɛla ḥsab el-šufa, el-ḥala kifkif

that we don't have sex with people we can't talk to.

belli ma neqqedruš nmewru mɛa el-nas elli ma nnejmuš nehhedru mɛahum.

(Laughter)

(Ḍeḥk)

Now we have to counter that, though,

Ḍerwek, lazem ɛlina nɛaksu, gaɛ kima n' hak,

against the evidence we've heard

ḍedd el-bayan elli smeɛnah men qbel

that we might have had some rather distasteful genetic dalliances

belli wqeɛ lina waḥed el-xlaṭ el-jini, elli ma yeɛjebš

with the Neanderthals and the Denisovans.

mɛa el-Nyandertal w el-Denisova.

(Laughter)

(Ḍeḥk)

Okay, this tendency we have,

Ṣeḥḥa, had el-sira elli ɛendna,

this seemingly natural tendency we have,

had el-sira el-ṭabiɛiya elli ɛendna win nmilu,

towards isolation, towards keeping to ourselves,

l el-ɛezla, w nebqaw waḥedna,

crashes head first into our modern world.

gaɛ ma tetwalemš mɛa el-ɛalem ntaɛ ḍerwek.

This remarkable image

Had el-ṣura el-mxxeyra

is not a map of the world.

mši xariṭa ntaɛ el-ɛalem.

In fact, it's a map of Facebook friendship links.

F el-waqeɛ, hiya xariṭa ntaɛ ɛalaqat ṣeḥba f el-Facebook.

And when you plot those friendship links

W ki tersem had el-ɛalaqat ntaɛ el-ṣeḥba

by their latitude and longitude,

ɛla ḥsab el-muḍeɛ (xṭuṭ el-ṭul w el-ɛerḍ),

it literally draws a map of the world.

el-ši elli yersem xariṭa ḥeqqaniya ntaɛ el-ɛalem.

Our modern world is communicating

El-ɛalem el-modern ntaɛna rahu yetwaṣel

with itself and with each other

mɛa datu w bin el-nas

more than it has

kter m elli kan el-ši

at any time in its past.

fi 'eyy weqt sbeq.

And that communication, that connectivity around the world,

W had el-mwaṣla, had el-rbaṭ el-meddawer b el-ɛalem

that globalization

had el-ɛawlama

now raises a burden.

tsebbeb muɛḍila.

Because these different languages

Laxaṭerš had el-luġat el-mextalfa

impose a barrier, as we've just seen,

tefreḍ ḥedd, kima rana ɛad ki šefna,

to the transfer of goods and ideas

ɛla jal el-nqil ntaɛ el-selɛa w el-fkarat

and technologies and wisdom.

w el-teknolojyat w el-rzana.

And they impose a barrier to cooperation.

W rahi tšekkel ḥedd l el-mɛawna.

And nowhere do we see that more clearly

W ḍerwek rana nšufu had el-ši xir zeɛma

than in the European Union,

kter m el-'Itiḥad el-'Öropi,

whose 27 member countries

b luġat el-menḍemmin lih el-27

speak 23 official languages.

yehhedru 23 luġa resmiya.

The European Union

El-'Itiḥad el-'Öropi

is now spending over one billion euros annually

rahu yeṣref kter men melyar € kul ɛam

translating among their 23 official languages.

ɛla el-terjama bin el-23 luġa el-resmiya.

That's something on the order

W hada ydir qrib

of 1.45 billion U.S. dollars

1.45 melyar dollar marikani

on translation costs alone.

ġir ɛla el-meṣruf ntaɛ el-terjama.

Now think of the absurdity of this situation.

Ḍerwek, xemmem f el-tfiš ntaɛ had el-ḥala.

If 27 individuals

La 27 ɛebd

from those 27 member states

m el-27 blad, elli menḍemma,

sat around table, speaking their 23 languages,

qeɛdu mdawrin b ṭabla, w huma yehhedru el-luġat ntaweɛhum el-23,

some very simple mathematics will tell you

šwiya ntaɛ ḥsabat txellina nqulu

that you need an army of 253 translators

belli neḥtaju jiš ntaɛ 253 terjman

to anticipate all the pairwise possibilities.

beš nwejdu gaɛ el-'imkaniyat elli tnejjem tkun

The European Union employs a permanent staff

El-'Itiḥad el-'Öropi ɛendu xeddama daymin

of about 2,500 translators.

qrib waḥed el-2.500 terjman.

And in 2007 alone --

W ġir f 2007 --

and I'm sure there are more recent figures --

w rani metyeqqen belli kayen ḥsabat jdud ɛla hadu --

something on the order of 1.3 million pages

ši qrib men 1.3 melyun ṣefḥa

were translated into English alone.

tterjmet l el-'engliziya waḥedha.

And so if language really is

W 'ida ṣeḥḥ el-luġa hiyya

the solution to the crisis of visual theft,

el-ḥell ntaɛ el-'ezma dyal el-sriqa b el-šufa,

if language really is

ida el-luġa hiya ṣeḥḥ

the conduit of our cooperation,

el-ṭriq ntaɛ el-mɛawna binatna,

the technology that our species derived

el-teknolojya elli txeyletha el-jnas ntaweɛna

to promote the free flow and exchange of ideas,

beš yššejɛu el-ḥaraka w el-tebdal el-mserreḥ ntaɛ el-fkarat,

in our modern world,

f el-ɛalem ntaɛna modern,

we confront a question.

nwajhu swal.

And that question is whether

W had el-swal huwa 'ida

in this modern, globalized world

f had el-ɛalem modern w el-mešmul

we can really afford to have all these different languages.

neqqedru ṣeḥḥ nessemḥu beš ykunu ɛendna gaɛ had el-luġat el-mextalfa.

To put it this way, nature knows no other circumstance

b kelmat waḥduxrin, el-ṭabiɛa ma teɛref ḥetta ḍerf xlaf

in which functionally equivalent traits coexist.

win tetɛayeš zuj simat metqablin men jiha't el-waḍifa.

One of them always drives the other extinct.

Waḥda fihum txelli el-zawja tenṣxeṭ.

And we see this in the inexorable march

W rana nšufu had el-ši yemši bla ma nqeddu nehherbu mennu

towards standardization.

beš ywelli huwa el-mizan.

There are lots and lots of ways of measuring things --

Kayen xir 'Allah ṣifat beš neɛɛebru el-ṣwaleḥ --

weighing them and measuring their length --

nšufu el-mizan ntaɛhum w nqisu el-ṭul dyalhum --

but the metric system is winning.

beṣṣaḥ el-sistem n' el-mitra huwa elli rah rabeḥ.

There are lots and lots of ways of measuring time,

Kayen xir 'Allah ṣifat beš nqisu el-weqt,

but a really bizarre base 60 system

beṣṣaḥ, ṣeḥḥ w ṣḥiḥ, el-sistem b sas el-60 w elli huwa weḥdu

known as hours and minutes and seconds

el-meɛruf b el-saɛat, el-dqayeq w el-twani

is nearly universal around the world.

huwa elli qriba meɛruf f el-ɛalem b kmalu.

There are many, many ways

Kayen šḥal w šḥal men ṣifa

of imprinting CDs or DVDs,

beš nssejlu el-Cdyat w el-DVDyat,

but those are all being standardized as well.

beṣṣaḥ hadu gaɛ rahum mɛa el-weqt ywellu tanik b el-qanun.

And you can probably think of many, many more

W teqder, twalli, ḥetta beš txemmem f kter w kter men hak

in your own everyday lives.

f el-ḥyat ntaɛkum di kul yum.

And so our modern world now

W hakda el-ɛalem modern ntaɛna el-yum

is confronting us with a dilemma.

rahu yqabel fina b muɛḍila.

And it's the dilemma

W hiya el-muɛḍila

that this Chinese man faces,

elli had el-šinwi rahu yqabel fiha,

who's language is spoken

ntaɛmen had el-luġa elli yehhedruha

by more people in the world

ġaši kter f el-ɛalem

than any other single language,

kter men 'eyy luġa waḥduxra,

and yet he is sitting at his blackboard,

gaɛ kima n' hak rahu qaɛed quddam el-sebbura ntaɛu,

converting Chinese phrases

yterjem el-jumel m el-šinwiya

into English language phrases.

beš yrredhum jumel b el-'ingliziya.

And what this does is it raises the possibility to us

W hada ykebber el-'iḥtimal ntaɛna

that in a world in which we want to promote

belli fi ɛalem win nebġu nddeɛmu

cooperation and exchange,

el-mɛawna w el-tebdal,

and in a world that might be dependent more than ever before

w fi ɛalem elli yeqder ykun qayem, kter melli kan qbel,

on cooperation

ɛla el-mɛawna

to maintain and enhance our levels of prosperity,

beš nethellaw w nṭelɛu el-daraja ntaɛ el-terfah dyalna,

his actions suggest to us

el-mefɛul dyalu yxellina neftarḍu

it might be inevitable

belli el-natija tnejjem tkun meḥtuma

that we have to confront the idea

win nwajhu el-fekra

that our destiny is to be one world with one language.

belli el-maṣir ntaɛna huwa ɛalem waḥed w luġa waḥda.

Thank you.

Ṣeḥḥitu

(Applause)

(Teṣfaq)

Matt Ridley: Mark, one question.

Matt Ridley: Mark, swal waḥed.

Svante found that the FOXP2 gene,

Svante lqa belli el-jin FOXP2,

which seems to be associated with language,

ɛla ḥsab el-šufa, mertabeṭ b el-luġa,

was also shared in the same form

kan kayen tanik, b nefs el-škel,

in Neanderthals as us.

ɛend el-Nyandertal, kima ḥnaya.

Do we have any idea

Ɛendna keš fekra

how we could have defeated Neanderthals

tfesser lina kifeš tġellebna ɛla el-Nyandertal

if they also had language?

lakan kanet ɛendhum huma tanik luġa?

Mark Pagel: This is a very good question.

Mark Pagel: Hada swal wafi mlaḥa.

So many of you will be familiar with the idea that there's this gene called FOXP2

Kayen šḥal men waḥed fikum rahu metwalef mɛa el-fekra belli kayen had el-jin elli semmuh FOXP2

that seems to be implicated in some ways

elli, ɛla ḥsab el-šufa, mertabeṭ b waḥd el-ṣifat

in the fine motor control that's associated with language.

kaynin f el-ḥeyya elli tḥerrek w tetḥekkem w elli mertabṭa b el-luġa.

The reason why I don't believe that tells us

El-sebba elli txellini ma n'emmenš ki yqulunna

that the Neanderthals had language

belli el-Nyandertal kanet ɛendhum luġa

is -- here's a simple analogy:

hnaya -- kayen tešbih sahel mahel:

Ferraris are cars that have engines.

El-Ferrari'yat hiya lwaṭa ɛendhum muturat.

My car has an engine,

El-loṭo ntaɛi ɛendha motör,

but it's not a Ferrari.

beṣṣaḥ hiya mši Ferrari.

Now the simple answer then

Amala, el-jwab el-sahel huwa

is that genes alone don't, all by themselves,

belli el-jinat waḥedha ma teqderš

determine the outcome

tqerrer el-natija

of very complicated things like language.

ntaɛ ṣwaleḥ zyada mɛeqdin kima el-luġa.

What we know about this FOXP2 and Neanderthals

Elli neɛɛerfuh ɛla el-FOXP2 w el-Nyandertal

is that they may have had fine motor control of their mouths -- who knows.

huwa belli twali kanu yeqqedru yetḥḥekmu f el-teḥrak ntaɛ fwamhum -- ya ḍra.

But that doesn't tell us they necessarily had language.

Beṣṣaḥ hada ma yqullenaš, b el-ḍarura, belli kanet ɛendhum luġa.

MR: Thank you very much indeed.

MR: Ṣeḥḥit b el-bezzaf.

(Applause)

(Teṣfaq)