The Old Testament narrates the story of Babel: God thought humanity had become so proud and rebellious that He punished them by confusing their language. Not able to understand each other, people left Babylon and populated the Earth. In the New Testament, Jesus’ disciples, suddenly, began speaking in tongues while people from different nations understood them in their own language. Amazed by the miracle, they immediately converted. These ancient stories express how essential communication and mutual understanding are for humans. 

Driven by trade, people from different cultures developed pidgin languages, which later evolved into creole, which then became first languages. And fortunately, people also discovered that languages could be learned (and taught). Linguists, intrigued about how languages work, study them to understand their symbols, sounds, structure, rules, and meanings. Semantics and Pragmatics, branches of linguistics, analyze the literal meaning of words (semantics) and the intended meaning (pragmatics) behind them. Because language represents the world around us, words describe objects, actions, and qualities whose meaning can be interpreted even if the symbols and sounds are different; for example, vidrio, vetro, or стекло refer to the same thing: glass.

Yet, words go beyond literal meanings. Speakers use language to convey an intention. In language teaching, context, shared knowledge, and interpretation are as important as vocabulary and grammar. Understanding what a speaker really means prevents confusion --perhaps even the chaos that once let humanity flee and populate the Earth. A phrase as "In a zombie invasion, you have nothing to worry about,” can have an innocent meaning (you’re well prepared) or a harsher one (zombies eat brains, and since you don’t have one, you’re safe).

Today, new and more sophisticated means of communication surround us, but the essence of words remains untouched: language helps us understand each other. If communication was once considered a miracle, today it is what unites us as human race.