Why are there different languages?

Answer 1

Distinct languages develop as people spread throughout different places and populations become isolated from one another. Over time, minor changes in a language will accumulate allowing different civilzations to develop their own distinct languages. In the earliest years of human existence, when the human population was still small and everyone lived in the same region, there was probably a common language. However, over time people began to migrate to different places and develop their own cultures and lifestyles, as well as languages.

A language is rarely created from scratch, it usually evolves from a previous older language. Languages are also never fixed, they change over time by the will of society. That's why we have Old English, Middle English, and Modern English. All it takes is a reading of a Shakespearian play to see how much the English language has changed.

Spanish, Italian, and French are considered romance languages which have a common ancestor in Latin. This is why we see so much similarity between them. When the Roman Empire collapsed, the population fragmented into isolated societies and gradually formed their own distinct languages.

Cultures, national rivalries, geography and different ruling bodies or people also affect the development of languages. If a political body fragments, different dialects can sometimes be intentionally developed to create distinction. Also, if two languages mix (when different populations live together) they will often influence one another.

In the USA, English has drastically changed in the last century because of technological/medical/scientific/progress advances; those types of words have added to the the English vocabulary.

Popular slang affects languages too. So the local colloquialisms affect the words and the accents used by the local population and the immigrants to the areas.

In mythology

The origin of all the different languages is rooted in many ancient myths and stories which were developed as ancient people attempted to explain the origin of different things. Here are just a few examples:

For example, the Hebrew Bible tells a story of a common language spoken by all humans. When they decided to build a tower in an attempt to reach heaven, God, fearing what they could potentially achieve, confounded their languages so they could not continue.

Hindu mythology tells a similar story, of a "knowledge tree" which grew into the sky. Brahma, to punish the pride of the tree, cut off its branches and threw them to the Earth, where they grew into separate trees and created diversity in languages and cultures.

Various Native American stories tell of a deluge which swept people all over the Earth, separating them from one another to eventually develop different languages.

According to Ancient Greek Mythology, mankind lived without law under the rule of Zues, until Hermes, the messenger god, brought diversity in speech, causing discord and separation into nations.
Humans migrated into Europe and Asia long before what we would call 'language' was formed.

Within each local community, people developed different ways to put across what they wanted to say, depending on their surroundings.

Over time, the most popular and powerful cultures absorbed or conquered the others around them, and spread what we now call separate languages.

You can still find various accents and dialects within major languages, in communities where people don't move out a lot.Due to spread of human population at different locations on earth, different languages came into existence. People adapted to the languages that they found easier for communication, This later or turned to be their mother tongue. The language differs place to place and it is as per the human adaption to it.

Answer 2

Languages have developed over time due to the need for communication among communities. Factors such as geographical isolation, cultural influences, and historical events have contributed to the diversity of languages seen today. Each language reflects the unique history, values, and customs of the people who speak it.