The Word

[William]

"In Australia, the Aboriginal Kuuk Thaayorre use compass directions for every spatial cue rather than right or left, leading to locutions such as "there is an ant on your southeast leg." The Kuuk Thaayorre are also much more skillful than English speakers at dead reckoning, even in unfamiliar surroundings or strange buildings. Their language "equips them to perform navigational feats once thought beyond human capabilities," Boroditsky wrote on Edge.org."

From a fascinating article on how language shapes perception.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/205985

Recent experience shows that ancient languages were more complex and sophisticated than modern, in Europe anyway, and if this were true of paleo times it would indicate that paleoman could differentiate between food and non-food much better than us.

[SkinnyDevil]

Recent experience shows that ancient languages were more complex and sophisticated than modern, in Europe anyway, and if this were true of paleo times it would indicate that paleoman could differentiate between food and non-food much better than us.

What experience?

In what way were they "more sophisticated? Word count? Grammar?

Assuming such an assertion is true, what led to the decreased sophistication of language?

[William]

There have been experts in the field of language who can answer your questions (linguists), the only thing I can add is that at the date of writing, last century, Icelandic and German were the only two European languages that retained much of their ancient complexity.

Someone commented on the difference between the language of Weston A. Price and modern usage, and that was only about 70 years ago.
And there is this gem in olde English, by a local king advising his subjects:
"Ða fæmnan þe gewuniað onfon gealdorcræftigan & scinlæcan &
wiccan, ne læt þu ða libban."
Note that we have completely lost "gewuniað", although it is retained in German, same for gh in neighbour.