What Did Neanderthals Sound Like?
Ever since the first Neanderthal fossils were identified in the mid-19th century, these ancient humans have generally been portrayed as brutish and inarticulate — interpretations steeped in the racial prejudices of Victorian-era anthropology. But we now know more about this extinct species than ever before, and new discoveries tell a very different story.
Neanderthals lived in groups, cared for their communities, and likely used sound and speech in far more complex ways than once imagined. Today, scientists are combining fossil evidence, computer modeling, and genetics to find out if Neanderthals really could talk — and if so, what they sounded like. By studying Neanderthal anatomy and their hearing range, researchers are reconstructing this lost voice — and, in doing so, uncovering clues about how the capacity for language evolved in us.
How Advanced Were Neanderthals?
Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) were a remarkably adaptable species of early humans who lived across Europe, West Asia, and parts of the Middle East from roughly 400,000 to 40,000 years ago. They are our closest extinct relatives — genetically distinct from modern humans (Homo sapiens), yet descended from the same ancestral population. Fossil and archaeological evidence shows that Neanderthals thrived for hundreds of millennia, forming resilient, interconnected communities.
Skilled toolmakers and problem-solvers, Neanderthals were capable of shaping stone, bone, and wood into tools for hunting and daily life. They controlled fire, built shelters, made and wore clothing, and even created ornamental and symbolic objects. Burials and healed injuries, meanwhile, hint at compassion and care within their groups.
Physically, these early humans were powerful and well adapted to cold climates, with broad noses, strong limbs, and compact builds that conserved heat. Yet their anatomy also held clues to a sophisticated capacity for communication — including skulls, throats, and inner ears that closely resemble our own.
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Could Neanderthals Speak Like Us?
One key clue to Neanderthal vocal ability comes from a small U-shaped bone in the throat, called the hyoid. This bone anchors the tongue and supports the muscles involved in speech.
A remarkably well-preserved hyoid from the Kebara 2 skeleton — discovered in northern Israel in 1989 and dated to about 60,000 years ago — is nearly identical in shape to that of modern humans. This suggests that Neanderthals had the anatomical foundation necessary for controlled, speechlike vocalizations rather than mere grunts or animalistic calls.
The discovery of the Kebara 2 hyoid triggered renewed debate over whether they possessed a “modern” vocal tract — and more refined modelling in recent decades has helped the idea gain traction in anthropological circles.
Neanderthals’ hearing ability also contributes to what we know about how they may have communicated. CT scans and 3D reconstructions of Neanderthal ear canals and middle-ear bones reveal that their hearing range peaked between 4 and 5 kHz — a frequency band important for perceiving the subtle consonant sounds of human speech. This finding indicates that Neanderthals were attuned to hear the same sound range that Homo sapiens use in spoken language, suggesting their communication system may have been more developed than previously thought.
Reconstructing the Neanderthal Voice
Using CT scans and 3D models of Neanderthal skulls, vocal tracts, and hyoid bones, scientists are now building detailed reconstructions of how these ancient humans produced sound. Their vocal anatomy was similar but not identical to that of modern humans. Neanderthals had slightly shorter vocal tracts and differently angled skull bases, both of which influence how air resonates as it moves through the throat and mouth. These anatomical differences likely shaped the quality of their speech, producing a voice that would have been recognizably human but with a narrower dynamic range — fewer sharp contrasts between certain vowels and a generally more uniform resonance.
Even so, anatomical modeling shows that Neanderthals could have produced a wide array of consonant and vowel-like sounds, including core vowel targets such as “ee,” “ah,” and “oo.” In other words, they had the physical capacity for speech, though their voices may have sounded flatter or more nasal than a modern human’s voice.
What remains uncertain is the complexity of the language they used. Because we can rely only on models derived from fossil anatomy, scientists cannot determine how expressive or syntactically flexible Neanderthal speech might have been. Recent research suggests they likely could speak, but they may not have used metaphors or the kind of layered syntax that modern humans rely on to express abstract ideas, emotional nuance, or the relationship between concepts.
By contrast, early Homo sapiens — who lived alongside Neanderthals for thousands of years — may have developed greater vocal flexibility and more complex syntax. That linguistic agility likely gave our ancestors an edge: Language helped them organize larger groups, share knowledge, and build cultures that endured. Even so, the divide wasn’t vast. The two groups interbred, shared tools, and may have exchanged words. If you stood beside a Neanderthal 50,000 years ago, their voice might have sounded unfamiliar — but recognizably human.
