The emergence of Indo-European

A. Location. Indo-European was by no means the first language or even close. Most evidence suggests that the original Indo-European language was spoken about 6,000 years ago in 4000 B.C., on the steppes of what is now southern Russia. The people are called the Kurgans, referring to burial mounds that they left behind. These people spread westward into Europe and eastward into Iran and India.

B. Evidence. We can infer some things about their homeland and culture from what words all or most of the Indo-European languages have in common. Because there are no common words for “palm tree” or “vine,” these people were unlikely to be Mediterraneans. Because there is no common word for “oak,” they most likely did not emerge in Europe. Because there are common words for “horse,” “wheel,” and related concepts, we assume that they were using horses as draft animals, and there is archaeological evidence that the Kurgan people had domesticated horses.

C. It has been theorized that Indo-European actually emerged in what is now Turkey, but recent genetic evidence concurs with the traditional southern Russian scenario.