Putting it all together: syntax and meaning in great ape gesture

All great apes, including humans, employ a rich repertoire of vocalizations, facial expressions, and gestures. Great ape gestural repertoires are particularly elaborate, with ape species employing over 80 different gesture types intentionally: that is towards a recipient with a specific goal in mind. Intentional usage allows us to ask not only what information is encoded in ape gestures, but what do apes mean when they use them. But what types of meaning can we explore using current methods, and what do we need to be able to move beyond these? I will present data on how signals and additional information are combined by great apes and make suggestions about what we can do to refine our exploration of meaning in non-human species.

To receive the link to attend the conference, please contact Lucie Ravaux, linguae.paris@gmail.com.