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Updated: May 21, 2026
07:18
Examining Gesture Production in the Presence of Communication Challenges
Published on: January 26, 2024
Language, gesture, skill: the co-evolutionary foundations of language.
1Department of Philosophy and Tempo and Mode, Australian National University, Australia. kim.sterelny@anu.edu.au
Summary
Language evolved from gestures, not vocalizations, in hominins. This gestural origins hypothesis offers solutions to key language evolution problems, including symbol emergence and syntactic organization.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Linguistics
- Cognitive science
Background:
- The evolution of human language remains a significant scientific challenge.
- Existing theories often struggle to explain specific aspects of language development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and defend the gestural origins hypothesis for language evolution.
- To demonstrate how this hypothesis can address classic problems in language evolution.
- To provide solutions for the emergence of symbolic and syntactic communication.
Main Methods:
- Developing an incremental model of language evolution based on gestural origins.
- Analyzing the evolutionary stability of cooperation in language use.
- Addressing the emergence of stimulus-independent symbols.
- Investigating the origins of complex syntax.
Main Results:
- An incremental model of language evolution is feasible under the gestural origins hypothesis.
- This hypothesis provides explanations for why language evolved uniquely in hominins.
- It clarifies the cooperative nature of language despite diverging evolutionary interests.
- It offers a framework for understanding the emergence of symbolic and syntactically organized communication.
Conclusions:
- The gestural origins hypothesis offers a robust framework for understanding language evolution.
- It successfully addresses major challenges, including the origins of symbolism and syntax.
- Further research is needed to address testability and the gesture-to-speech transition.
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