The evolutionary origin of the language areas in the human brain. A neuroanatomical perspective

Abstract

The capacity to learn syntactic rules is a hallmark of the human species, but whether this has been acquired by the process of natural selection has been the subject of controversy. Furthermore, the cortical localization of linguistic capacities has prompted some authors to suggest a modular representation of language in the brain. In this paper, we rather propose that the neural device involved in language is embedded into a large-scale neurocognitive network comprising widespread connections between the temporal, parietal and frontal (especially prefrontal) cortices. This network is involved in the temporal organization of behavior and motor sequences, and in working (active) memory, a sort of short-term memory that participates in immediate cognitive processing. In human evolution, a precondition for language was the establishment of strong cortico-cortical interactions in the postrolandic cortex that enabled the development of multimodal associations. Wernicke's area originated as a converging place in which such associations (concepts) acquired a phonological correlate. We postulate that these phonological representations projected into inferoparietal areas, which were connected to the incipient Broca's area, thus forming a working memory circuit for processing and learning complex vocalizations. As a result of selective pressure for learning capacity and memory storage, this device yielded a sophisticated system able to generate complicated utterances (precursors of syntax) as it became increasingly connected with other brain regions, especially in the prefrontal cortex. This view argues for a gradual origin of the neural substrate for language as required by natural selection.