Primate Language

Paper Summary:

The paper examines how language educators and researchers continue to debate how language is developed in humans. The paper further examines the differences between humans and other higher primates regarding language. The paper explores how, in order to gain more insight on how language evolved in early humans, researchers closely study language acquisition in primates.

From the Paper:

"What Stokoe finds most interesting is the turning of the head, just as signers of American Sign Language turn their head and gaze to mark a change from one part of a complex structure to another. Concludes Stokoe: Children are fortunate that elementary sign language preceded spoken language. As people get older, they forget how they used their bodies, eyes and heads. However, once speech is acquired at another stage and a person is fully articulate, it is still possible to go to "Nevada or Oklahoma and enter into conversation with a chimpanzee." "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Corballis, M. (2003) From Hand to Mouth: The Origins of Language. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
• Kosseff, L. "Primate Use of Language." Animal Cognition Website. Retrieved March 27, 2006. http://www.pigeon.psy.tufts.edu/psych26/language.htm
• Stokoe, W. (2001) Sign Language Studies 1(4): 407-425.

More papers on Primate Language:

• Research Paper # 4425 : "A Common Language: Communication Between Humans and the Great Apes"
• Research Paper # 128554 : "Understanding the Origins of Language"
• Research Paper # 57039 : "Psycholinguistics: The Acquisition of Language"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: