# What was the first word? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 9, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965 "2012-01-09T20:36:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/21 "2012-01-09T23:55:59Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > Some monkeys do have different calls for different predators, to differentiate between predators that can’t climb well (eg. tigers), predators that can’t run well (eg. snakes) and eagles. > Do they count as words? So, do the calls refer to the predators or do they mean “Climb!” “Run!” and “Hide!”. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/22 "2012-01-10T00:04:31Z")
> [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](#): > > So, do the calls refer to the predators or do they mean “Climb!” “Run!” and “Hide!”. Dunno about monkeys, but the communication of prairie dogs have been in the news a lot recently, and their calls certainly seem to refer to different predators. In fact, they can apparently even [differentiate between humans in different colored shirts](http://www.npr.org/2011/01/20/132650631/new-language-discovered-prairiedogese). ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/23 "2012-01-10T00:48:28Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Language ain’t my specialty, but I know that there has been suggestion that the first “words” weren’t “words” as we would call them at all, bu “modifiers” to various calls, suggesting things like “near” and “far”. > On a more conventional front, because “mama” is one of the earliest sounds a baby makes (and, somewhat to a lesser degree, “papa” or “dada”), and because these words are surprisingly similar across languages, these might be the first words. > > [Mama and papa - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mama_and_papa) [Babies vocalize](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babbling) all the sounds they will ever use in language before they ever say an actual word. The earliest sound, that is not a cry, isn’t an mmm sound, usually bbb or ggg because they are easier to form by wild little mouths. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/24 "2012-01-10T04:14:44Z")
I’m gonna guess either “ma” or similar or else “NO!!!” ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/25 "2012-01-10T04:25:01Z")
**What was the first word?** Logos, of course, as stated in [John 1:1](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%201:1;&version=KJV): > [@John](#): > > In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/26 "2012-01-10T04:57:47Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > AAAaarrgghhh! No no no, it’s more in the back of the throat. “aaarrrrrrrrrrgggghh” ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/27 "2012-01-10T05:42:32Z")
Fap ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/28 "2012-01-10T06:33:29Z")
> [@Balance](#): > > We could get into fuzzy questions about what constitutes a word, as opposed to a non-word vocalization, but I’m just going to go ahead and guess that it was a word for “snake”. I’ll second this one. . ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/29 "2012-01-10T15:16:44Z")
An only slightly related but interesting article I read yesterday suggesting that some basic parts of language are universal: [http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21128211.600-kiki-or-bouba-in-search-of-languages-missing-link.html](http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21128211.600-kiki-or-bouba-in-search-of-languages-missing-link.html) ---
**Author:** ![MostlyClueless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@MostlyClueless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MostlyClueless)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/30 "2012-01-10T15:23:15Z")
I think the first word could be translated as ‘there!’ or ‘warning!’ (or basically, ‘for fuck’s sake, pay attention!’) ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/31 "2012-01-10T15:26:40Z")
P.U. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/32 "2012-01-10T15:27:59Z")
> [@MostlyClueless](#): > > I think the first word could be translated as ‘there!’ or ‘warning!’ (or basically, ‘for fuck’s sake, pay attention!’) Like I suggested before: “Umgawa!” Of course, if you go by the Tarzan movies, it can also mean: Cheetah, bring me a banana Jane, wanna fuck? Where did I leave my big-ass knife Y’all lions get out of my way, goddammit Who’s for dinner? ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/33 "2012-01-10T15:35:42Z")
I’d be curious to know when folks started giving each other and pets names. I understand naming things as descriptors (man, dog, etc) but it’s one thing to say, “That’s a dog” and quite another to say,“That dog’s name is Bob”. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965/34 "2012-01-10T16:38:36Z")
It’s a chicken and egg thing. Before you get “Mama” you’d have to have a lot of Oooooowwwwwwwwch! and before you get to the Ooooooowwwwwwwwwch! You have to get through the “How _YOU_ doing?!?” So if we speculate that one bald and smarter-than-usual chimp said to another baldish and smartish chimp “How _YOU_ doing?!?” then the baldish and smartish chimp spent a lot of time saying “Ooooooowwwwwwwch!” then the first human word would probably have been “Mama.” By which the first human probably meant - “I want some more milk now, please.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-first-word/608965.md?page=1)