A longstanding issue in psychology has been, When does human memory begin? More particularly, when do we begin to remember personal experiences in a way that makes them accessible to recollection later in life? Current popular and scientific thinking would have us believe that memories are possible not only at the time of our birth, but also in utero. Indeed, some writers in the popular press (as well as some recent television programs) suggest that we can remember past lives and that such memories are affecting our current behaviors. The purpose of this special issue is to examine, in a scientific context, what the most recent empirical data have to say about the nature of early memory and its development. In this article, we provide the background to the questions that prompted this special issue and suggest that memory for personal events, although it may start quite early in life, does so much later than claimed in popular writings about early memory.