<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>This paper offers a brief critical review of some of the so-called “Talking Animals” projects. The findings from the projects are compared with linguistic data from <italic>Homo sapiens</italic> and with newer evidence gleaned from experiments on animal syntactic skills. The question concerning what had the so-called “Talking Animals” really done is broken down into two categories – words and (recursive) syntax. The (relative) failure of the animal projects in both categories points mainly to the fact that the core feature of language – hierarchical recursive syntax – is missing in the pseudo-linguistic feats of the animals.</p></abstract>

This paper offers a brief critical review of some of the so-called “Talking Animals” projects. The findings from the projects are compared with linguistic data from Homo sapiens and with newer evidence gleaned from experiments on animal syntactic skills. The question concerning what had the so-called “Talking Animals” really done is broken down into two categories – words and (recursive) syntax. The (relative) failure of the animal projects in both categories points mainly to the fact that the core feature of language – hierarchical recursive syntax – is missing in the pseudo-linguistic feats of the animals.

Representational Systems in Zoosemiotics and Anthroposemiotics Part I: What Have the So-Called “Talking Animals” Taught Us about Human Language?

Theoretical and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Philosophy and History of Sciences

Linguistic Frontiers

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

This paper offers a brief critical review of some of the so-called “Talking Animals” projects. The findings from the projects are compared with linguistic data...

Representational Systems in Zoosemiotics and Anthroposemiotics Part I: What Have the So-Called “Talking Animals” Taught Us about Human Language?

Published Online: Apr 24, 2019

Page range: 14 - 38

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/lf-2018-0005

Keywords
language, syntax, representation, meta-representation, zoosemiotics, anthroposemiotics, talking animals, general cognition, representational systems, evolutionary discontinuity, biosemiotics

© 2018 Vilém Uhlíř, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Representational Systems in Zoosemiotics and Anthroposemiotics Part I: What Have the So-Called “Talking Animals” Taught Us about Human Language?

Published Online: Apr 24, 2019

Page range: 14 - 38

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/lf-2018-0005

Keywordslanguage, syntax, representation, meta-representation, zoosemiotics, anthroposemiotics, talking animals, general cognition, representational systems, evolutionary discontinuity, biosemiotics

© 2018 Vilém Uhlíř, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
language, syntax, representation, meta-representation, zoosemiotics, anthroposemiotics, talking animals, general cognition, representational systems, evolutionary discontinuity, biosemiotics