Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. Kimbrough Oller

Update: 2025-12-04

Description

Beyond Words Ep. 15 | Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. D. Kimbrough Oller

What do a baby’s coos, squeals, and growls reveal about the origins of language? In this episode of Beyond Words, Dr. D. Kimbrough Oller — a leading voice in speech and language development — joins Garrett Oyama to explore protophones, functional flexibility, and why spontaneous infant vocalizations may hold the key to understanding how language evolved.

Topics include:

What protophones are and why they matter
The Functional Flexibility Hypothesis
How infant vocal play relates to evolution
What LENA recordings reveal about early speech
Why babies vocalize even when no one is listening

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In Channel

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Beyond Words Preview Episode

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Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. Kimbrough Oller

#box-pro-ellipsis-176676875355750{-webkit-line-clamp:2;}Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. Kimbrough Oller

Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. Kimbrough Oller

Before Words: Understanding Babbling with Dr. Kimbrough Oller