India, March 14 -- They're among the greatest magic spells we have in the real world: words. (Among the others on our list: hugs, fireworks, Christmas.)

But back to words, how do a few sounds convey the idea of a golden day dying in an orange sunset; or the quick brown fox jumping over the lazy dog (with all that implies)?

How did we get to the point where we can use these spells to craft riddles, elicit tears, evoke a laugh or a memory? Command an army, or get a team to meet a deadline?

The sad truth is that most of the history of the spoken word is lost.

All we have are tantalising hints: human fossils indicating changes in the brain and vocal tract; archaeological finds ranging from tools to symbols.

Amid new scientific breakthrou...