when do babies start talking

Babies generally start talking around the age of 9 to 12 months. Before they say actual words, they begin with babbling sounds, typically starting as early as 4 to 6 months of age. Babbling includes strings of consonant-vowel sounds like "ba-ba" or "da-da" which are the foundation of verbal communication. By about 6 months, babies regularly babble, and by 9 months, they can string sounds into multiple syllables. The first recognizable words often appear between 9 and 12 months, with common early words being "mama" and "dada." After their first words, vocabulary starts to grow more rapidly, and by 12 to 18 months, babies typically begin to use and understand more words. By age 2, they start forming simple phrases and sentences.