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Why language really is not a communication system: a cognitive view of language evolution
1CNRS UMR 5304, Laboratory on Language, Brain and Cognition (L2C2), Institute for Cognitive Sciences-Marc Jeannerod Bron, France.
Frontiers in Psychology
|October 7, 2015
Summary
Language initially evolved as a cognitive tool, not for communication. This cognitive function, the Language of Thought, later enabled communication by exaptation, shaping the language-ready brain.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary linguistics
- Cognitive science
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Traditional evolutionary language theories posit communication as the primary driver.
- Unique features of language (semanticity, discrete infinity, decoupling) challenge communication-centric evolution.
- Existing communication models fail to explain language evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose an alternative evolutionary scenario for language.
- To re-evaluate the origins of language as a cognitive tool before communication.
- To explain the emergence of a language-ready brain and syntax.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical analysis of language evolution.
- Critique of existing communication models (code and ostensive).
- Application of Fodor's Language of Thought Hypothesis.
Main Results:
- Language's unique features are better explained by its cognitive origins.
- A reorganized brain connectivity facilitates conceptual system and syntax emergence.
- Communication via language is an exaptation of its cognitive functions.
Conclusions:
- Language likely evolved first as an internal cognitive tool (Language of Thought).
- This internal language was subsequently exapted for external communication.
- The unique properties of language stem from its cognitive origins, not its communicative function.
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