An international team proposes replacing Hockett’s feature checklist with a model of language as a dynamic, multimodal, and socially evolving system.

Language is more than just spoken and written words. It’s the lens through which we see the world. Language is a beautifully intricate system that allows us to express our thoughts, emotions and ...

Human language may seem messy and inefficient compared to the ultra-compact strings of ones and zeros used by computers—but our brains actually prefer it that way. New research reveals that while ...

Humans' unique language capacity was present at least 135,000 years ago, according to a survey of genomic evidence. As such, language might have entered social use 100,000 years ago. It is a deep ...

A group of neuroscientists argue that our words are primarily for communicating, not for reasoning. By Carl Zimmer For thousands of years, philosophers have argued about the purpose of language. Plato ...

John Fiset receives funding from Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Devasheesh Bhave receives funding from the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) Academic Research Fund (AcRF).

In 2010, a new goddess, about two feet tall and cast in bronze, was set to appear in a village within the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. She looked nothing like the deities of Hindu mythology. In lieu ...

Five years ago, in the heart of the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation, along the Canadian St. Lawrence River across from Montréal, Kanen’tó:kon Hemlock and Ieronhienhá:wi Tatum McComber pondered a question posed ...