Introduction: Origin and evolution of language – An interdisciplinary perspective

Several disciplines contribute to the discussion on the origin of language: computer simulation, cognitive psychology, genetics, paleoanthropology, and comparative studies, as some examples. Some disciplines employ sophisticated analysis techniques resulting in empirical evidence inconceivable until a few years ago. However, the huge volume of data available and the heterogeneity of disciplines have had problematic effects on research: each discipline contributing to the study of language is different from another, so the first difficulty is identification of a point of convergence among extremely heterogeneous empirical results. This paper tries to delineate a new theorethical framework for the study of language orings able to synthesize currentempirical results. This new paradigm is based on the embodied tehories of language and mind.