Little scientific work has been done on the “language” of animals. Partly because most animals are not very gabby, partly because they are shy, until lately the only available collections of ...

Language, say many linguists, is what makes us human. Animals may grunt, bark or chirp, but they do not possess anything that counts as language. Cornips is using her work with dairy cows to push ...

Cornips believed that cows possessed the intellect and social behaviours to be useful research subjects for linguists. As a ...

We have yet to overcome the communication barrier between humans and animals, but we may be getting closer by the day. How could we talk to animals? The key to understanding animal language could ...

Humpback whale songs share structural similarities with human language, suggesting complex communication patterns.

On top of breakthroughs in animal language, the Earth Species Project expects improved interspecies understanding will foster greater appreciation for the planet in the face of climate change.

“Whale song is not a language,” Garland says flatly, noting that most experts agree that the animals’ “words” don’t carry semantic meaning. (Neither does music, for that matter—yet ...