Learning Language in the Womb

Image: Canwest News Service

Did you know that babies learn elements of language before they are even born? While still in their mother's womb, fetuses can memorize sounds and melodies in both music and language. Researchers have now discovered that babies reproduce intonations of language patterns that they have memorized while in the womb.

This study centered around the analysis of crying melody patterns of French and German infants. It was discovered that French newborns produce rising crying patterns, while German newborns produce falling crying patterns. As researcher Angela Friederici explains, "In French, a lot of words have stress at the end, so that the intonation rises, while in German, it is mostly the opposite." This study shows that newborns produce sounds with intonation patterns that are familiar. Evidence from additional studies also suggests that by the time a baby reaches four months old, intonations of the mother tongue are firmly fixed in the brain.

Learn more about this discovery:

• Language Learning Starts From The Womb Science Daily