Proto

Publishes 30th April 2025. To pre-order contact us through orders@lanebook.com.au or (08) 9384 4423

Lindsay Hasluck's Review 

Rarely is a work of such investigative depth and over-arching importance in ancient history made available in such a digestible format for the general reader. Laura Spinney’s new research into the roots, shoots and stems of the Indo-Aryan language tree brings the reader back into the murky past of the late Paleo-lithic and early Neo-lithic period where the journey begins. In a time when archaeological evidence is too scarce to paint a clear picture of the early Indo-Aryan speaking people, Spinney uses language as her brush to paint a vivid picture of the past.

Through investigation of the evolving roots of language from the Far East to the Far West, from the dawn of time to the present day, Spinney presents workable theories and considers all possibilities in the light of linguistic, genetic and artefactual evidence. There are plenty of surprises in store, even for those who consider themselves aficionados of Proto-Neolithic peoples of the East. The role of the cultures of the Steppe, Stans and Balkans is rarely ever stated as being of such fundamental importance to the growth of Indo-Aryan languages and societies, and as bridging the gap as the missing link between East/West, past and present, and the final globalisation of the English language. 

The book’s detailed analysis does not, however, bog the reader down. The inclusion of Spinney’s personal narrative cascading through time and geography, as through all the different cultures, makes for an engaging read. The evolution of a language, and the attendant cultural self-discovery, has never seemed quite so exhilarating. While the book doesn’t provide definitive answers to the evidence it explores, readers are left sufficiently educated to come to their own conclusions.

Avid readers of ancient history who enjoyed Alice Roberts Celts will also admire the way Spinney takes the notion of cultural inter-connectedness and spins an even larger thread through time. She entwines various migratory myths and themes, from India to ancient Greece and Rome, Celts and Medieval ages. I would have liked a greater focus on early symbolism as a language vector, I appreciate that this would have created a denser and more unwieldy book. But Spinney’s failure to mention Gobekli Tepe and associated sites is an unfortunate oversight in the book. Those points aside, Proto is an excellent read. 

This is the story of where we came from, who we were, and why we are here now, influencing the world. Undoubtedly the ancient history book of the year, Proto is available in a handsome paperback edition, with a few hardbacks available for order. 

Due to be released shortly. 

Other Reviews

'Lively and fascinating. I loved it' - David Bellos, author of Is That a Fish in your Ear?

'A truly extraordinary detective story' - Matt Ridley, author of The Evolution of Everything

Publisher's Review

One ancient language transformed our world. This is its story.

Star. Stjarna. Stare. Thousands of miles apart, people look up at the night sky and use the same word to describe what they see.

Listen to these English, Icelandic and Iranic words and you can hear echoes of one of the most extraordinary journeys in humanity’s past. All three of these languages – and hundreds more – share a single ancient ancestor.

Five millennia ago, in a mysterious Big Bang of its own, this proto tongue exploded, forming new worlds as it spread east and west. Today, nearly half of humanity speaks an Indo-European language. How did this happen?

In Proto, acclaimed journalist Laura Spinney sets off to find out. With her we travel the length of the steppe, navigating the Caucasus, the Silk Roads and the Hindu Kush. We follow in the footsteps of nomads and monks, Amazon warriors and lion kings – the ancient peoples who spread these tongues far and wide. In the present, Spinney meets the linguists, archaeologists and geneticists racing to recover this lost world. What they have discovered has vital lessons for our modern age, as people and their languages are on the move again.

Proto is a revelatory portrait of world history in its own words.