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Proto

How One Ancient Language Went Global

Laura Spinney

$52.99

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English
William Collins
02 July 2025
'Lively and fascinating. I loved it' David Bellos, author of Is That a Fish in your Ear?

'A history of the world in microcosm' Douglas Preston, author of The Lost City of the Monkey God

One ancient language transformed our world. This is its story.

As the planet emerged from the last ice age, a language was born between Europe and Asia. This ancient tongue, which we call Proto-Indo-European, soon exploded out of its cradle, changing and fragmenting as it went, until its offspring were spoken from Scotland to China. Today those descendants constitute the world’s largest language family, the thread that connects disparate cultures: Dante’s Inferno to the Rig Veda, The Lord of the Rings to the love poetry of Rumi. Indo-European languages are spoken by nearly half of humanity. How did this happen?

Laura Spinney set out to answer that question, retracing the Indo-European odyssey across continents and millennia. With her we travel the length of the steppe, navigating the Caucasus, the silk roads and the Hindu Kush. We follow in the footsteps of nomads and monks, Amazon warriors and lion kings – the ancient peoples who spread these languages far and wide. In the present, Spinney meets the scientists on a thrilling mission to retrieve those lost languages: the linguists, archaeologists and geneticists who have reconstructed this ancient diaspora. What they have learned has vital implications for our modern world, as people and their languages are on the move again. Proto is a revelatory portrait of world history in its own words.

‘Superb. A truly extraordinary detective story’ Matt Ridley, author of The Evolution of Everything
By:  
Imprint:   William Collins
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 240mm,  Width: 159mm,  Spine: 25mm
Weight:   270g
ISBN:   9780008626525
ISBN 10:   0008626529
Pages:   352
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming

Laura Spinney is a science journalist and writer. She is the author of the celebrated Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World. Her writing on science has appeared in National Geographic, Nature, The Guardian and The Atlantic, among others. Born in the UK, she lives in Paris.

Reviews for Proto: How One Ancient Language Went Global

'Thought-provoking … A lively and fascinating account of how these languages split from their root, developed in different ways, mingled with each other, crossed tracks, flourished and died. I loved it!' David Bellos, author of Is That a Fish in your Ear? 'Formidably researched but lightly written, I put down this book with the pleasurable sense that the world around me had become a little stranger and richer.' Helen Gordon, author of Notes from Deep Time ‘Superb. With style and panache, Laura Spinney tells a truly extraordinary detective story’ Matt Ridley, author of The Evolution of Everything ‘Spinney charts an extraordinary journey through human history with words as a compass. It is a sweeping story beautifully told. Profound and illuminating.’ Moudhy Al-Rashid, author of Between Two Rivers 'This beautifully researched and written book is about far more than language; it is a history of the world in microcosm, drawing together a diversity of subjects from genetics and religion to warfare and boozing. I highly recommend this wholly absorbing book.' Douglas Preston, author of #1 New York Times bestselling The Lost City of the Monkey God Profound and illuminating. 'Proto is a real detective story told with a compelling combination of academic rigour, human interest, vivid description, and personal biography. A tour de force.' David Crystal, author of A Date with Language ‘Hooray for a book where the author's curiosity, diligence, and literary craft gets it all down – the language, the archaeology, the DNA – in what will stand as the go-to source for a generation at least.’ John McWhorter, author of New York Times bestselling Nine Nasty Words: English in the Gutter ‘Laura Spinney’s erudite and highly entertaining text is full of refreshing new insights as she tells the fascinating and romantic story of this dialect that spread across the world.’ Professor Peter Trudgill FBA


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