Muteness may result from two conditions: physical muteness, where the person has a problem with the throat or vocal chords rendering them unable to make sounds; and deafness, which the person can make the sounds but not speak. Occasionally children who are born mute might be physically mute because of genetic factors inherited from their parents and other relatives. Since a child’s genetic make-up is dictated by that of their parents, if the parents have genes that can cause physical problems to the throat or vocal chords, the child then could be born unable to create sound. There could be other reasons too.