Yuusuf Abubakar (Abuu Mus'abilkhayr)

To start with, the development of communication through language is a natural process in every individual.

It is this interplay of nature and nurture that results in our ability to communicate, but the process of learning language begins with how the brain is structured.

How does brain growth influence language development?
As the infants' brains continue to develop, they also develop the ability to communicate; to comprehend and produce spoken language.
They are able to do this by watching others, listening to them, and when these actions are repeated overtime, they learn to speak without any external effort.
This is what I meant when I said "language development is a natural development at infancy".
 Babies' and young children's language development is strongly influenced by the language they hear spoken around them and to them.

As for the adult, it may not be so. He tries to store information of the language he wishes to speak, imitate the speakers, watch them voluntarily and that means, he learns a new language dependently.

Relationship between language and mind?
Before we further on this, what is mind? To a layman, mind is courage. But mind is "knowledge and intellectual ability, the thoughts that are responsible for your feelings, brain function. In fact, mind is the seat for the faculty of reason." (Wordweb).

Language is the most important means of interaction for a person's development; and a beautiful gift. Our thoughts, feelings, needs and wants make us human. But in order to share the emotions, one needs to communicate
How then does one communicate without a means? Surely, you would need a medium by which you communicate to people and make them understand your thoughts. This means is *language¹*.

We have been talking about language. What does it means?
Merriam Webster defines a language as
 “the system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other”

Simply put as noted earlier, the relationship between language and mind is to enable us share thoughts, knowledge, feelings, express our needs, wants and those make us humans. When we don't feel, we stop been humans. We communicate by the use of language.

The part of the brain is responsible for language development
 Wernicke's¹ area is primarily responsible for language comprehension. Damage to this area results in receptive aphasia². The primary auditory cortex identifies pitch and loudness of sounds. The angular gyrus is responsible for several language processes, including (but not limited to) attention and number processing.
If the Wernicke's area of the brain is affected, then the person may still be making sounds, but unreasonable. He may be pronouncing right words, but meaningless when you try put them together. Have you ever seen a man heavily drunken, speaking haphazardly and you can't understand anything?

Does learning a second language impact brain development?
Learning a new language alters brain development. The age at which children learn a second language can have a significant bearing on the structure of their adult brain.
The majority of people in the world learn to speak more than one language during their lifetime, for one obvious reason or others. We won't dwell on that.

 Learning a new language gives you chances to interact with different cultures and relate with people of different languages. You can understand what may not be accurately interpreted into another language.
Let me make an instance.
A rising number of Muslims learns Arabic today because the interpretation of the Muslims Holy Book, The Qur'aan into the English, Spanish, Yoruba and other languages can never capture the perfectness of what it is. The message may be passed, but a better understanding abounds in your ability to speak and understand the language in which it came from God.

From these instances, we can attest to the fact (not an idea anymore) that learning a second language develops the brain.

My inability to communicate comfortably in the Yoruba language has really been a great loss on (for)¹ me. Many pieces of information would be communicated in my presence, and yet I cant figure it out. One may be sold when he doesn't understand the language of the parties speaking.

Brain scan studies show that switching between two languages triggers different patterns of brain activity, compared with speaking in one language, particularly in the prefrontal cortex.(Feb 3, 2016).

The cognitive benefits of learning a language have a direct impact on a child's academic achievement. Compared to those without an additional language, bilingual children have improved reading, writing, and math skills, and they generally score higher on standardized tests.
Learning a second language offers proven benefits for intelligence, memory, and concentration and lowered risks of dementia and Alzheimer's.  Because language is complex, speaking or learning a foreign language, different from one's mother-tongue, gives your brain a good workout. It's good brain exercise that makes the brain stronger.

How does language affects thinking?
Languages do not limit our ability to perceive the world or to think about the world, but they focus our perception, attention, and thought on specific aspects of the world. They rather affect our thinking positively, never negatively. This may be determined also by the reason an adult chose to learn a language. Some learn it for dubious reasons.
Language is more than just a means of communication. It influences our culture and even our thought processes. During the first four decades of the 20th century, language was viewed by American linguists and anthropologists as being more important than it actually is in shaping our perception of reality.

How does language influence behavior?
Scientists and linguists have conducted various studies and researches on how language shapes the way people think and behave. Language is part of culture and culture has an effect on the way a person thinks, which initiates behaviors.
A case study of Nigeria for instance. When a man speaks in a particular language, we already know the kind of food he may eat that we may not take. Some tribes take starch made from cassava, and others don't.

 Other benefits of learning a new language.
Does learning a language increase IQ?

1. Learning a new language may improve people's thinking skills and memory abilities, research suggests. Learning a second language may help improve brain function regardless of when you start.

2. It enables problem solving and critical thinking skills, enhanced concentration, ability to multitask, and better listening skills.

3. It makes you smarter. It can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills not related to language and even shielding against dementia in old age.

4. If you are granted fluency in a second language, your chances of employment in today's economy are much greater for you than for those who speak only one language. Multilingual people are able to communicate and interact within multiple communities, thereby, they have an advantage over the monolinguals.

Yuusuf Abubakar Ozemoya Irekpita (Abuu Mus'abilkhayr) is an Edo born graduate of Arabic language, who also possesses control of the English Language, and he was a Two time Editorial Chief for the prestigious MSSN UNILORIN Editorial Board.