Simon Prentis has spent a lifetime working with other cultures and languages in over fifty countries. A veteran translator and interpreter of Japanese, his clients have ranged from national and academic institutions to cultural icons like Paul McCartney, Stanley Kubrick, Frank Zappa and Yoko Ono. A graduate of Oxford University, and a member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting since 1990, he has worked extensively with the broadcast media, given expert testimony in high-profile intellectual property disputes, translated four books and reams of technical documents, and presented papers on translation and interpreting at international conferences.

In this episode, Simon and I discuss some amazing insights about language development and its impact on our evolution. We explore the origins of language and how this mode of communication ultimately catalyzed culture as we know it today. Language development is essential for cognitive development as we know it. There is great power in our words.

Our ability to speak and understand speech is fundamental to understanding how our civilizations came to be. Language allows us to share ideas, express our thoughts and emotions, and ultimately propagate a growth in consciousness. 

Given the fundamental power of language, the question of its origin is paramount. Simon argues that language evolved from analogue grunts (noises) to digital (compound) sounds/words. By combining a short string of individual sounds (phones), suddenly, there is exponential growth in the availability of ‘words’ that can exist to represent so many different things. However, this development has not come without great challenges - challenges in belief, identity, application, and knowledge. 

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Produced by: Jason Shapiro 

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