French babies cry in French, German babies cry in German and, no doubt, the wail of an English infant betrays the distinct tones of a soon-to-be English speaker. And they all learn the basic element, the melody pattern, of their native language in the womb. This is the remarkable conclusion of research at Germany's Würzburg university, published in Current Biology this week, that apparently overturns the idea that babies are much older before their efforts at communication are influenced by the sounds around them. Instead, the sounds they hear during their last three months in the womb have a big influence on the way they exercise their vocal chords after birth.
The Würzburg team recorded and analysed the cries of 60 healthy newborn babies, half born into French-speaking families and half into German-speaking families. The analysis showed clear differences between the two groups: French newborns tended to cry with a rising melody pattern, the scientists found, while German newborns preferred a falling melody pattern.
