Search for Primate Origins of Phonological Uniqueness in Human Languages

Abstract

Language is unique to humans and no equivalent cognitive/communication system has been found in other animals, but many similarities have been reported, such as in bird song “syntax” or monkey call “semantics.” Phonology is considered a unique area of the human faculty of language, but recent studies on both monkeys and birds have shown similarities, and further claimed a “new” precursor for the faculty of language. Many linguistic components, including phonology, could be precursors, pre-existing abilities in nonhuman animals, and acquisition of these precursors could act as a pre-adaptation for the emergence of human language.