When do babies start to talk?

[RachelG]

Hi
My DS is 14 months old, and has been babbling randomly for quite a while (bababa, mamama, dadada, dididi). But the sounds don't relate to particular objects - when he says mamama he's just muttering to himself, not relating it to me. He doesn't have any definite words yet. I just wondered if this is normal. I know some babies (esp girls) often talk very early, but is 14 months quite late?
Thanks

[Tutter]

how long is a piece of string

some before 12 months
some not until well after 2nd birthday

ds is 17mo and says nowt

well he kind of says 'no' but that's it

[lemonaid]

It's not ridiculously late. Does he try to communicate by pointing and gesturing, and does he understand a lot of what you say to him? It all takes off very quickly once they do get going... although I will say that "Mummy" was not one of DS's first words. Unlike the name of MIL's dog, which was in his first few .

[poppynic]

Hi. I think it's completely variable. Some exceptionally brilliant people haven't talked until very late - about 4. Some babies get going about 9 months. My ds was quite late - didn't really get going until 23 months but began and continued by speaking clearly. We think he waited until he knew he could speak properly. As long as you are talking lots to him and he is understanding please don't start worrying for a while yet...

[Peridot30]

Agree with tutter. All kids are different. Ds spoke sentances at a very early age whereas dd was 3 in october and really only started talking in sentances during the summer. Now she is a little chatterbox.

[bendi]

Little Boy Emperor not speaking yet but does sing Noo Noo Noo in exactly the right places in the Amy Winehouse song...

[Trinityrhino]

dd2 is 19 months and says no, plane, pete, daddy, mum, all gone, uh oh, yuk, manny, fart , poo, sheep and dog

she doesn't say them totally right and only about half of those words are intelligeble to anyone outside the family

dd1 was no way this early to speak and I'm sure dd2 is doing it because dd1 NEVER shuts up so she has lots of exposure to words.......fart and poo were prouly taught to her by dd1

[mummygunpowdertreasonhill]

They all develope at their own rate.

I have a friend who is involoved in speach therapy and she told me that boys tend to be a little lazy with their speach and recomends baby signing.

DD was talking quite well by first birthday. DS now 13 months can manage ewow (hello) mumumum, dadada, at (cat) on (gone) babababababa

[jambot]

DD, 20 months today, doesn't really say a word that is understandable. She has come out with quite a few random words over the last month or two, but then I don't really hear them again. She doesn't shut up 'talking' all day long in her own language and gets very frustrated that I don't understand her. Her comprehension is impressive though and she understands 95% of everything I say to her and come now carry out fairly complex instructions well, such as "go to your bedroom, open the cupboard, look in the blue bag and find me your shoe. Not worried at all as most children I know only really started to speak from this age onwards and many only from their second birthdays.
I wouldn't have really expected anything from DD at 14 months.

[hollyhobbie]

DD didn't really talk until 17 months. But then she suddenly had an explosion of vocabulary - pretty much from one word "daddy" to over 70 in the space of a month.

I was a bit worried that she was 'late' because a friend's DD spoke from about 11 months. It's so random though - this friend's DD still can't jump, whereas my DD (11 months younger) can... totally up to the child what they develop first, I think.

[all4girlz]

my dd4 is just 18 m and says holly lovely but not much else apart from mummy and dada a funny noise and nod of the head is thankyou and she has 3 older sisters babbling at her so I guess they are all different

[3littlefrogs]

The most important thing is the understanding and responding. As long as they can understand what you are saying and can point to things and communicate in other ways, usually speech will follow.

[CorrieDale]

My friend's DD is 21mo and just started to talk a month ago. My friend was getting really quite concerned by her DD's silence, and now is amazed by just how much she can say!

[Blandmum]

dd was 11 months, ds 13+ months and was then very slow to add new words. They vary so much. I wouldn't say that 14 was late

[mamama]

Interesting thread as I was wondering the same thing. 13 month old DS chunters away to himself all the time but has very few actual words. I'm not really worried yet as he communicates fairly well without actually talking. All I can say is thank goodness for signing - he can now ask for help without squealing!