Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2017
Originally Published In
Gavin, M. C., Rangel, T. F., Bowern, C., Colwell, R. K., Kirby, K. R., Botero, C. A., Dunn, M., Dunn, R. R., McCarter, J., Pacheco Coelho, M. T. and Gray, R. D. (2017), Process-based modelling shows how climate and demography shape language diversity. Global Ecol. Biogeogr., 26: 584–591. doi:10.1111/geb.12563
Abstract
Aim
Two fundamental questions about human language demand answers: why are so many languages spoken today and why is their geographical distribution so uneven? Although hypotheses have been proposed for centuries, the processes that determine patterns of linguistic and cultural diversity remain poorly understood. Previous studies, which relied on correlative, curve-fitting approaches, have produced contradictory results. Here we present the first application of process-based simulation modelling, derived from macroecology, to examine the distribution of human groups and their languages.
Location
The Australian continent is used as a case study to demonstrate the power of simulation modelling for identifying processes shaping the diversity and distribution of human languages.
Methods
Process-based simulation models allow investigators to hold certain factors constant in order to isolate and assess the impact of modelled processes. We tested the extent to which a minimal set of processes determines the number and spatial distribution of languages on the Australian continent. Our model made three basic assumptions based on previously proposed, but untested, hypotheses: groups fill unoccupied spaces, rainfall limits population density and groups divide after reaching a maximum population.
Results
Remarkably, this simple model accurately predicted the total number of languages (average estimate 406, observed 407), and explained 56% of spatial variation in language richness on the Australian continent.
Main conclusions
Our results present strong evidence that current climatic conditions and limits to group size are important processes shaping language diversity patterns in Australia. Our study also demonstrates how simulation models from macroecology can be used to understand the processes that have shaped human cultural diversity across the globe.
ORCID
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0955-2795 [Botero]
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Gavin, Michael C.; Rangel, Thiago F.; Bowern, Claire; Colwell, Robert K.; Kirby, Kathryn R.; Botero, Carlos A.; Dunn, Michael; Dunn, Robert R.; McCarter, Joe; Pacheco Coelho, Marco Tulio; and Gray, Russell D., "Process-based modelling shows how climate and demography shape language diversity" (2017). Biology Faculty Publications & Presentations. 135.
https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/bio_facpubs/135
Movie supplement
geb12563-sup-0002-suppinfo2.pdf (3315 kB)
Figure supplements
Included in
Biology Commons, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Linguistic Anthropology Commons
Comments
© 2017 The Authors. Global Ecology and Biogeography Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Originally published as: Gavin, M. C., Rangel, T. F., Bowern, C., Colwell, R. K., Kirby, K. R., Botero, C. A., Dunn, M., Dunn, R. R., McCarter, J., Pacheco Coelho, M. T. and Gray, R. D. (2017), Process-based modelling shows how climate and demography shape language diversity. Global Ecol. Biogeogr., 26: 584–591. doi:10.1111/geb.12563