The evolution of language from social cognition

•Language and primate communication share many neural mechanisms and social functions.•Like humans, primates use vocalizations to facilitate social interactions.•Call meaning depends on call type, caller ID, kinship, rank, and prior behavior.•Primate communication constitutes a discrete, combinatorial, and open-ended system.•When language first evolved, many of its distinctive features were already present.

Despite their differences, human language and the vocal communication of nonhuman primates share many features. Both constitute a form of joint action, rely on similar neural mechanisms, and involve discrete, combinatorial cognition. These shared features suggest that during evolution the ancestors of modern primates faced similar social problems and responded by evolving similar systems of perception, communication and cognition. When language later evolved from this common foundation, many of its distinctive features were already in place.