The study tested newborns on two sets of vowel sounds -- 17 native language sounds and 17 foreign language sounds, said Kuhl. The researchers tested the babies' interest in the vowel sounds based on ...

We often think of babies as blank canvases with little ability to learn during the first few weeks of life. But babies actually start processing language and speech incredibly early. Even while in the ...

Toddlers are learning language skills earlier than expected and by the age of 18 months understand enough of the lexicon of their own language to recognize how speakers use sounds to convey meaning.

Languages that evolve at high elevations are more likely to include a sound that’s easier to make when the air is thinner, new research shows. Photo by Flickr user twicepix You likely don’t give a ton ...

The lower air pressure at high altitudes may be a factor in why ejective consonants are more popular in languages spoken higher up. Sophie Bushwick reports The human voice is capable of forming a ...

Of course, plenty of languages share words that have similar sounds because they’re either “descended” from the same original language (such as Spanish “hospital” and French “hopital,” both of which ...