The Semi-Aquatic Theory: Semi-Aquatic Evolutionary Phase and Environment, Language Development of Modern Humans. With a Short Epilog on Conceptualized Evolution, Social Ecology and the Quintuple Helix

This article presents the semi-aquatic theory motivated to provide an explanation for why or how did language of the modern humans develop? Key propositions of this theory are early hominids went through a semi-aquatic evolutionary phase and that this semi-aquatic environment exposed the early hominids to frequent visual reflections of their own image, thus transforming a “potential sense of self†to an “active sense of selfâ€, which supported the language development of early hominids. In the epilog of this article, the semi-aquatic theory is being framed and assessed in context of a broader discussion that receives analytical input from “Conceptualized Evolution†and social ecology. Conceptualized Evolution distinguishes between “possible worlds of evolution†and “real worlds of evolutionâ€. However, Conceptualized Evolution stresses that based on “theoretical†(theoretically designed) examples of evolution, even if they never existed empirically, much could be learned for an understanding of our real world. The semi-aquatic theory qualifies at least as a conceptually possible scenario of evolution.