• Biblical Tradition: God and Adam
- God created Adam, according to the book of Genesis.
- Adam named every living creature, as per the biblical tradition.
• The Divine Source in Various Religions
- In Hindu tradition, Sarasvati, Brahma’s wife, is credited with bringing language to humanity.
- Many religions suggest a divine source providing language to humans.
• Experiments to Rediscover the Origin
- Various experiments attempted to find the original divine source of language.
- Basic hypothesis: Infants, without exposure to language, would spontaneously develop it.
• Herodotus’ Egyptian Pharaoh Experiment
- Pharaoh Psammetichus isolated babies with goats and a mute shepherd.
- Babies reportedly uttered a word, “bekos,” identified as Phrygian for “bread.”
- Conclusion: Phrygian might be the original language, though skepticism is expressed.
• King James IV and Speaking Hebrew
- Scottish King James IV’s experiment around 1500 claimed infants spoke Hebrew.
- Belief: Hebrew was the language of the Garden of Eden.
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• Akbar the Great’s Silence Experiment
- Mogul emperor Akbar’s experiment resulted in infants producing no speech.
- Real-world outcomes align with the experience of isolated children.
• Real-world Examples: Victor and Genie
- Children like Victor in Aveyron, France, and Genie in the U.S. showed no spontaneous language development when isolated.
- Contrary to experimental claims, isolated children tend to grow up without language.
• Challenges in Reconstructing Original Language
- The idea that language emanated from a divine source faces challenges.
- Events at Babel, as described in Genesis (11:9), make reconstructing the original language diffic.
