双语时事系列208:语言的起源

2009-12-28 00:00:00来源：新东方

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肢体语言：语言的起源

Recent research with chimps provides support for theories of how language evolved in humans.

最近对黑猩猩的研究结果为人类语言的进化理论提供了支持。

The Roots of Language

One of the lingering challenges in cognitive psychology is the evolution of language. Even though it's so much a part of what it means to be human.

But a new clue to language's early formation comes from chimpanzee behavior.

It's the brain's left hemisphere that controls most of our language—and a study to be published in the January 2010 issue of the journal Cortex shows that chimps have a strong preference for using their right hands when communicating. (The left hemisphere controls movement on the right side of our body.)

Researchers studied hand use in 70 chimps over 10 months. They recorded movements that displayed communications like greeting, threat, invitations, aggression or play. And found that chimps used their right hand significantly more when trying to communicate, than for other manual actions (like grooming or opening something).

Scientists also showed that this type of gestural communication is used between chimps, and not just when they were trying to communicate with humans. Interesting to note the chimps' gestures matched some specifics of language, like intentionality to do something and making references between objects.

But perhaps even more interesting is that this study provides further support to the theory that our communication originated with gestures. Which might explain why we wave our hands, exhaustively, when trying to be understood in countries where we don't speak the language.

Now, we should see for ourselves if we gesticulate more righty than lefty.

语言的起源

虽然语言对人类来说意义非常重大，但是语言的发展一直是认知心理学中没有解决的一个挑战。

不过最近对黑猩猩行为的研究结果能为语言的早期形成提供一些新的线索。

大脑的左半球控制着我们绝大部分的语言功能。即将发表在2010年1月份的《大脑皮层》（Cortex）杂志上的一项研究发现，当黑猩猩之间互相交流的时候，它们使用右手的倾向性非常强。（大脑左半球控制我们右边身体的运动）

研究者们对70只黑猩猩的用手行为进行了长达10个月的研究。他们记录下了黑猩猩显示交流的一些动作，比如问候、威胁、邀请、攻击或者是玩耍。研究者们发现，和其它一些手上动作相比（比如梳毛或者是打开某样东西），当黑猩猩尝试交流的时候，它们用右手要远远多于用左手。

科学家们还发现，黑猩猩之间也使用这种肢体语言进行交流，而不仅仅局限于它们和人的交流。有意思的是，黑猩猩的这些肢体语言与语言的某些特定含义对应，比如做某事的企图以及提及几种物体中的某物。

不过该研究更有兴趣的地方或许在于，它为“交流起源于肢体语言”的理论提供了进一步的支持。这或许能解释，当我们在异国他乡的时候，为了让别人理解我们，为什么我们会拼命舞动我们的手。

现在我们需要看看我们人类自己是否用右手做手势的时候多于用左手的时候。

Vocabulary:

Chimp：Chimpanzee的缩写，黑猩猩

Lingering：迟迟不去的