A team led by Johannes Krause of the Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany made the discovery from DNA which was recovered from Neanderthal remains found in a cave in Northern Spain. The particular gene which has been found present in the Neanderthal DNA is called FOXP2. Modern humans who have mutations in their copy of the FOXP2 genes exhibit problems in coordinating their movements in order to form speech – while at the same time, suffering very little or no other cognitive impairment.

Researchers believe that MRI scans of the brains of humans who have a mutation to their FOXP2 gene show a different response to humans with a normal FOXP2 gene. Specifically brain regions which should be activated when individuals who have the ability to speak are asked to think about an action or are mentally repeating a series of words are less responsive. It seems that humans who have a mutated version of FOXP2 are unable to understand language nor can they control their mouths to form speech. This seems to indicate that damage to FOXP2 creates a handicap in regards to speech.

So if FOXP2 was present in Neanderthals, does this mean that they had the ability to speak?

Neanderthals and our direct ancestors co-existed at the same time. It’s commonly believed by anthropologists that both were descended from a direct ancestor. You could say that they ‘had the same parents’.

Neanderthals, or Homo Neanderthalensis can be found solidly entrenched as an identifiable species by 130,000 years ago – although some characteristics of Neanderthals were identifiable as early as 350,000 years ago. Homo Sapiens, our direct ancestors, on the other hand, are thought to have originated only 200,000 years ago – and anatomically modern human remains have been found in African fossils dated to approximately 130,000 years. It seems that they came into contact with each other perhaps as early as 50,000 years ago. By 33,000 to 24,000 years ago, Neanderthals had become extinct.

In 2005, the entire genome of the chimpanzee was mapped. It showed a genetic similarity to modern human DNA up to 98.77%. It also showed the presence of the FOXP2 gene – although in a different form. When Krause and his research team examined the Neanderthal DNA they expected to find that their version of the FOXP2 gene was very similar to that of the chimpanzee – but it was not. The Neanderthal FOXP2 appeared to have the same structure as that in modern humans.

Where did the similarities between modern humans and Neanderthals end?