Udział kultury w procesie ewolucji i kształtowania się języka
The Contribution of Culture in the Process of Language Evolution and Language Formation

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the following paper is to discuss and analyse the investigations and scientific research on the process of language formation, as well as to show that the course of this was regulated not only by bio- logical and cognitive structures but also by the cultural context that accompanied it. The main premise of the work is the thesis that language is a broad, multifaceted phenomenon, which was developed in response to the human need for communication, which later influenced language development. Article deals with the genesis and evolution of language from the perspective of the socio-cultural context that could accompany both phenomena. The hypothesis of the biological and cultural co-evolution of Peter J. Richerson and Robert Boyd is discussed, as well as the findings of Daniel L. Everett concerning the origins of language and its original character. Work aims to prove that culture and nature should not be treated as an opposition, but as two equally material factors, that affect one another. It also attempts to determine whether culture can influence grammatical structures. The premise for adopting such a thesis is the grammar of the Pirahã people language, which does not meet the postulate of Hauser, Chomsky, and Fitch that all languages are recursive, which in turn may undermine the thesis about the universal, biological basis of grammatical structures. Therefore, it can be treated as an inducement to reassess the way, both philosophy and linguistics, perceive the nature of language.

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