Abstract
Comparative research has proven to be a fruitful field of study on the ontogenetic and phylogenetic evolution of language, and on the cognitive capacities unique to humans or shared with other animals. The degree of continuity between components of human language and non-human animal communication systems, as well as the existence of a core factor of language, are polemic subjects at present. In this article, we offer an overview of the research on animal communication, comparing the resulting data with the current knowledge on human language development. We try to summarize what is currently known about “language abilities” in multiple animals, and compare those facts to what is known about human language. The aim of the article is to provide an introduction to this particular topic, presenting the different sides of the arguments when possible. A special reference is made to the question of syntactic recursion as the main component of language, allegedly absent among non-human animals. We conclude that the current state of knowledge supports the existence of a certain degree of continuity between different aspects of animal communication and human language, including the syntactic domain.
Highlights
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, LPL UMR 7309, 13100, Aix-en-Provence, France “...il ne s'est toutefois jamais trouvé aucune bête si parfaite, qu'elle ait usé de quelque signe, pour faire entendre à d'autres animaux quelque chose qui n'eût point de rapport à ses passions; et il n'y a point d'homme si imparfait, qu'il n'en use.”1 René Descartes, Lettre au Marquis de Newcastle
We offer an overview of the research on animal communication, comparing the resulting data with the current knowledge on human language development
This research has revealed a rich set of cognitive capacities on non-human animals; yet, continuity between human language and any other form of animal communication has been refused by many academics
Summary
The term animal communication refers to the transfer of information by an animal that provokes a change in the behavior of the receiver of the information (Preece & Beekman, 2014). It has been proposed that in both human and NHP brain the left Planum Temporale (within Wernicke's area) participates in the processing of non-linguistic sounds, only in humans it has a specific sensitivity to sound patterns found in natural sign or spoken languages (Petitto, 2005). If this turns out to be the case, NHP would share with humans the ability to process non-linguistic sounds, but not to process linguistic patterns themselves. This important difference could be due to small, but meaningful, organizational differences between the NHP and the human brain
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