Which language is recorded as first in the world?

Answer 1

Although some people believe Arabic was the first language ever spoken, Sumerian, Elamitic and Egyptian are contenders for the first written language. There is no accurate historical record of what language was actually the first ever spoken. Numerous cultures and religions have repeatedly put forth claims that their tongue was the original language of humanity, but none of these postulations have withstood scrutiny. Moreover, the evolution of language has been a long and slow process, and what constitutes an actual language, in distinction from a less advanced form of verbal/gesture communication, has been the subject of serious debate among linguists. Ultimately, we shall never know what the earliest occurrence of language was. We can imagine that language as we know it has existed for approximately 100,000 years (estimates range from 50,000 to 500,000), and that the first human language likely arose somewhere in eastern Africa. One fact is definite: that original language went extinct many millennia ago. Written language is our only definite source of information about linguistic history, and the earliest records of possible "writing" go back to the Vinča culture of southeastern Europe; these artifacts date from before 4000 B.C. However, they are not considered to be first evidence of actual written language; that honor goes to the Sumerian cuneiform script that was in use in Mesopotamia around 3000 B.C.

Answer 2

The Sumerian language is one of the first recorded languages in the world, dating back to around 3100 BC in ancient Mesopotamia. It was written using cuneiform script on clay tablets.