Mother tongue determined by men, study says

Father rather than mother tongue may be a better description of someone’s native language, research suggests.

A study has found that, throughout history, it is men who have made the biggest impact on the spoken word.

Scientists investigated male and female genetic markers from several thousand communities to study patterns of language transmission.

They found that the language spoken by a community largely depends on the arrival of men, whether through the migration of pioneering farmers or military invasion.

From Scandinavian Vikings pillaging British shores to African, Indian and Polynesian tribes, the same trend was seen around the world.

“It may be that during colonisation episodes by emigrating agriculturists, men generally outnumber women in the pioneering groups and take wives from the local community,” said Professor Colin Renfrew, from Cambridge University.

“When the parents have different linguistic backgrounds, it may often be the language of the father which is dominant within the family group.”

Prof Renfrew and his Cambridge colleague, Dr Peter Forster, report their findings today in the journal Science.