al., 1998), syntax (Indefrey, Hellwig, Herzog, Seitz, & Hagoort, 2004; Novoa & Ardila, 1987), and higher level linguistic processing, such as understanding the reasoning underlying a conversation (Caplan & Dapretto, 2001).(...)Right HemisphereAlthough the cortical language areas discussed so far are localized to the left hemisphere in most people, there is substantial evidence that the right hemisphere also contributes importantly to language. The right hemisphere understands short words (Gazzaniga, 1970) and entertains alternative possible meanings for particular words (Beeman & Chiarello, 1998), suggesting that it is better able to interpret multiple intended meanings of a given linguistic communication. The right hemisphere also plays a greater role in a variety of types of spatial processing in most people (Tzeng & Wang, 1984; Vallar, 2007), thus presumably grounding the semantics of spatial terms. The right frontal lobe mediates aspects of prosody (Alexander, Benson, & Stuss, 1989; Novoa & Ardila, 1987), which is critically important to understanding intended meaning (consider sarcasm, in which the intended meaning is directly opposite the literal meaning).(...)CerebellumThe primary function of the cerebellum was long thought to be monitoring and modulating motor signals from the cortex (Carpenter & Sutin, 1983). However, more recent work has implicated the cerebellum in a whole range of higher cognitive functions, including goal organization and planning, aspects of memory and learning, attention, visuo-spatial processing, modulating emotional responses, and language (Baillieux, De Smet, Paquier, De Deyn, & Marien, 2008). The cerebellum appears to play a role in speech production and perception, as well as both semantic and grammatical processing (Ackermann, Mathiak, & Riecker, 2007; Baillieux et al.; De Smet, Baillieux, De Deyn, Marien, & Paquier, 2007). The cerebellum also seems to play a role in timing mechanisms generally (Ivry & Spencer, 2004), which may explain its functional relevance to language (given the importance temporal information plays in language production and perception).ConclusionMany evolutionary changes in the brain appear to have relevance to language evolution. The increase in overall brain size paved the way for language both by encouraging localized cortical specialization and by making possible increasingly complicated social interactions. Increasing sociality provided the central usefulness for language in the first place and drove its evolution. Specific areas of the brain directly relevant to language appear to have been particularly elaborated, especially the prefrontal cortex (areas relevant to semantics and syntax) and the temporal lobe (particularly areas relevant to connecting words to meanings and concepts). Brocas and Wernickes areas are not unique to human brains, but they do appear to have been elaborated, along with the arcuate fasciculus connecting these areas. Other areas of the brain that participate in language processing, such as the basal ganglia and cerebellum, are larger than predicted based on overall body weight, although they have not increased as much as a number of language-relevant areas of the cortex. Finally, little evidence suggests that significant elaboration of the auditory processing pathways up to the cortex has occurred, but direct pathways down to the tongue and respiratory muscles have been strengthened, with new direct pathways created to the larynx, presumably specifically for speech.These findings are consistent with