Comments on Games with Words: Do monkeys have grammar?

Ok, point taken.

2009-12-30T16:37:35.648-05:00

Ok, point taken.

Hi Kikipotamus -- In human languages, new words ap...

2009-12-28T22:01:49.365-05:00

Hi Kikipotamus -- In human languages, new words appear every day. Why should it be different for the monkeys? (The fact that it *is* different for monkeys is probably very important.)

That said, the main point of my post is that the existing data are consistent with these monkeys having word combinations. The data are also consistent with the monkeys having two words that sound similar. For instance: "monkey" and "funky". The only way I know of telling the two theories apart is to look at novel "word combinations".

On a practical level, whether these monkeys can combine words is almost irrelevant; since their vocabulary is so restricted, combining words doesn't add very much to the range of things they can talk about. What the authors' hypothesis suggests, though, is that an important limitation in monkeys is not their ability to combine words, but their ability to learn words that can later be combined together (though, again, the demonstrated word combinations are extremely limited in scope).

It seems to me that the oo suffix could mean "-lik...

2009-12-28T21:28:03.778-05:00

It seems to me that the oo suffix could mean "-like situation." Krak could mean leopard; Krak-oo could mean "leopard-like situation!" or "Danger on the ground!" Hok could mean Crowned Eagle, and Hok-oo could mean "Eagle-like situation" or "Danger above the ground." But even if these are correct assumptions, I don't think teaching the monkeys Dax and then seeing if they produce a new word using the oo suffix is a very valid test. While you might succeed in teaching them the name for chipmunk, three things would probably be needed for the group to create a new word Dax-oo: 1) the existence of chipmunk-like situations 2) the need to communicate about those situations and 3) the time it takes for new words to evolve--usually generations.