Oxford Handbook of Human Symbolic Evolution

The biological and neurological capacity to symbolize, and the products of behavioral, cognitive, sociocultural, linguistic, and technological uses of symbols (symbolism), are fundamental to every aspect of human life. The Oxford Handbook of Human Symbolic Evolution explores the origins of our characteristically human abilities - our ability to speak, create images, play music, and read and write. The book investigates how symbolization evolved in human evolution and how symbolism is expressed across the various areas of human life. The field is intrinsically interdisciplinary - considering findings from fossil studies, scientific research from primatology, developmental psychology, and of course linguistics.

Written by world leading experts, thirty-eight topical chapters are grouped into six thematic parts that respectively focus on epistemological, psychological, anthropological, ethological, linguistic, and social-technological aspects of human symbolic evolution. The handbook presents an in-depth but comprehensive and interdisciplinary overview of the of the state of the art in the science of human symbolic evolution. This work will be of interest to academics and students active in all fields contributing to the study of human evolution.

Nathalie Gontier, University of Lisbon, Andy Lock, Department of Psychology, Massey University, Chris Sinha, School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Commuication, University of East Anglia

Nathalie Gontier has a background in philosophy of science and comparative anthropology. Her research investigates how evolutionary theories develop in biology, how they are applied to study symbolic (sociocultural and linguistic) evolution, and how they are depicted in diagrams. She is the founding director of the Applied Evolutionary Epistemology Lab and she currently holds a research position at the Faculty of Science of the University of Lisbon. Her work has been sponsored, amongst others, by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, the European Marie Curie actions, the American Museum of Natural History, and the John Templeton Foundation.


Andy Lock was Professor Emeritus at the School of Psychology at Massey University, New Zealand. With a background in zoology and developmental psychology, his early research focused on the development of communication and language in infancy and early childhood. He was a pioneering researcher in language evolution and human symbolic evolution, and was widely recognised for his work in a broad range of fields including indigenous psychologies, social constructionism and therapeutic practice. He was also known for his innovative and early engagement with online learning and teaching, through his establishment in the 1990s of The Virtual Faculty.


Chris Sinha gained his BA in developmental psychology at the University of Sussex, and his doctorate (cum laude) at the University of Utrecht. His research is in the relations between language, cognition and culture in human development and evolution. Methodologically, his research seeks to integrate cognitive linguistic with socio-cultural approaches to language and communication in the construction of a biocultural approach to human symbolic evolution. He is experienced in field experimental and observational methods in human communication and human development. He has published in disciplines including anthropology, linguistics, education, evolutionary biology, connection science, as well as developmental and cultural psychology.