The ‘design features’ of language revisited. Final version by Michael Pleyer & al. with Koen de Reus, @limorraviv.bsky.social doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2025.10.004

I have another entry out in the International Encyclopedia of #Language and #Linguistics that I am super happy about! "Language Evolution and Social Networks" (with @limorraviv.bsky.social) doi.org/10.1016/B978...

Intriguing! The "waggle dance is a primitive form of a semantic system also found (through convergent evolution) in human language. It is remarkably ancient, at least 20 million years old..." onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Want to do an experimental PHD on the evolution of human language? Only one more week left to submit your application!

Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄@limorraviv.bsky.social · 4mo ago

I'm hiring! 📢 Fully funded 4-year PhD position in Language Evolution using Communication Games at @mpi-nl.bsky.social. Come work with me on how different social pressures shape the evolution of new communication systems in the lab! Deadline for application is May 18th! share.google/fGTKbFS4v4Gb...

Had an amazing time at #EvolangXVI, the 16. International Conference on the Evolution of Language in Plovdiv, Bulgaria! Our lab the Center for Language Evolution Studes at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń was out in full force, a short summary thread of our work 🧵⬇️ #language #linguistics

This is work based on our recent paper in @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1364661325002797

w/ mperlman.bsky.social, @glupyan.bsky.social Koen de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social we presented work on going "Beyond Hockett's Design Features" evolang.org/2026/proceed...

And that was #EvolangXVI! Thanks to all the organisers and helpers, it was an amazing experience as always! See you all in 2028 in Nijmegen, NL for #EvolangXVII, organised by @limorraviv.bsky.social @asliozyurek.bsky.social and @profsimonfisher.bsky.social!

Can't wait for 2028! See you all in Nijmegen!! @evolangconf.bsky.social

Michael Pleyer@symbolicstorage.bsky.social · 4mo ago

And that was #EvolangXVI! Thanks to all the organisers and helpers, it was an amazing experience as always! See you all in 2028 in Nijmegen, NL for #EvolangXVII, organised by @limorraviv.bsky.social @asliozyurek.bsky.social and @profsimonfisher.bsky.social!

Yes!!!! We are hosting #Evolang17!!! Nijmegen ın 2028!!

Michael Pleyer@symbolicstorage.bsky.social · 4mo ago

And that was #EvolangXVI! Thanks to all the organisers and helpers, it was an amazing experience as always! See you all in 2028 in Nijmegen, NL for #EvolangXVII, organised by @limorraviv.bsky.social @asliozyurek.bsky.social and @profsimonfisher.bsky.social!

I'm hiring! 📢 Fully funded 4-year PhD position in Language Evolution using Communication Games at @mpi-nl.bsky.social. Come work with me on how different social pressures shape the evolution of new communication systems in the lab! Deadline for application is May 18th! share.google/fGTKbFS4v4Gb...

Curious how language can emerge within swarms of robots? 🤖🗨️🤖 Then join our "Swarm Robotics for Language Evolution" workshop at @evolangconf.bsky.social, where you'll get to explore this topic through a live-coding demo and hands-on simulations. More info and signup here: romamile.com/SwarmLangEme...

Truly one to watch! Congrats @damianblasi.bsky.social !

Cognitive Science Society@cogscisociety.bsky.social · 7mo ago

The CogSci Society would like to congratulate the brilliant Dr. Damián Blasi @damianblasi.bsky.social for being awarded the 2026 Early Career Impact Award from the Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences @fabbs.org 👏👏👏 Learn more at cognitivesciencesociety.org/fabbs-early-...

What a thrilling start to 2026 – honored to be recognised by @cogscisociety.bsky.social and @fabbs.org ! Can’t wait to meet you all in Rio this July, one of the absolute gems of my beloved South America!

Cognitive Science Society@cogscisociety.bsky.social · 7mo ago

The CogSci Society would like to congratulate the brilliant Dr. Damián Blasi @damianblasi.bsky.social for being awarded the 2026 Early Career Impact Award from the Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences @fabbs.org 👏👏👏 Learn more at cognitivesciencesociety.org/fabbs-early-...

The CogSci Society would like to congratulate the brilliant Dr. Damián Blasi @damianblasi.bsky.social for being awarded the 2026 Early Career Impact Award from the Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences @fabbs.org 👏👏👏 Learn more at cognitivesciencesociety.org/fabbs-early-...

It warms my linguistics heart to see the current generation of scientists engaging with the history of linguistic thought. More please 🙏

Michael Pleyer@symbolicstorage.bsky.social · 9mo ago

🚨NEW PUBLICATION ALERT!🚨 The 'Design Features' of Language Revisited (w/ @mperlman.bsky.social @glupyan.bsky.social Koen de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social) Feature Review out now in #OpenAccess in @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social! #language #linguistics Paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

Really nice to see this reappraisal of "design features for language". Our book "A Multimodal Language Faculty" also discusses design features, and I believe presents the only model of language that satisfies the type of linguistic framework that they advocate www.bloomsbury.com/us/multimoda...

A Multimodal Language Faculty

Natural human communication is multimodal. We pair speech with gestures, and combine writing with pictures from online messaging to comics to advertising. This…

bloomsbury.com

Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄@limorraviv.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Super proud of this fabulous team for challenging old comparative frameworks and rethinking what makes language language. Read more in the thread below 👇 or here 📖😊: www.cell.com/trends/cogni...

Sign language research provides some key data supporting this framework for language evolution

Simon Fisher@profsimonfisher.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n

Fascinating thread and review, questioning the 'big bang' view of the emergence of language.

Simon Fisher@profsimonfisher.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n

Thank you for this very insightful explainer thread about (y)our latest @science.org paper, @profsimonfisher.bsky.social - must read for everyone in linguistics!

Simon Fisher@profsimonfisher.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n

Happy World #Linguistics Day everyone! If you're interested in #language and its evolution, these two threads are a good place to start! bsky.app/profile/symb...

Simon Fisher@profsimonfisher.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n

Looking forward to future projects with this crew! Was a joy to work on this admittedly difficult paper! Very proud of the final product. Have a look!

Cedric Boeckx@cedricboeckx.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Interesting re-reading & re-appraisal of a classic paper on the design features of specific cognitive systems like human language, by @symbolicstorage.bsky.social @mperlman.bsky.social @glupyan.bsky.social K de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social 🧪

The ‘design features’ of language revisited. Just published (open access) by Pleyer, Perlman, Lupyan, de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social. doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

Interesting re-reading & re-appraisal of a classic paper on the design features of specific cognitive systems like human language, by @symbolicstorage.bsky.social @mperlman.bsky.social @glupyan.bsky.social K de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social 🧪

Limor Raviv 🐘🤗🦒🍄🦄@limorraviv.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Super proud of this fabulous team for challenging old comparative frameworks and rethinking what makes language language. Read more in the thread below 👇 or here 📖😊: www.cell.com/trends/cogni...

We hope this paper leads to renewed discussions and can provide a roadmap for future research comparing human language and non-human animal communication and for the study of language evolution. Full paper here: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti... Press release: www.mpi.nl/news/65-year...

Super proud of this fabulous team for challenging old comparative frameworks and rethinking what makes language language. Read more in the thread below 👇 or here 📖😊: www.cell.com/trends/cogni...

The ‘design features’ of language revisited

Language is often regarded as a defining trait of our species, but what are its core properties? In 1960, Hockett published ‘The origin of speech’ enumerating 13 design features presumed to be common ...

cell.com

Michael Pleyer@symbolicstorage.bsky.social · 9mo ago

🚨NEW PUBLICATION ALERT!🚨 The 'Design Features' of Language Revisited (w/ @mperlman.bsky.social @glupyan.bsky.social Koen de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social) Feature Review out now in #OpenAccess in @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social! #language #linguistics Paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

🚨NEW PUBLICATION ALERT!🚨 The 'Design Features' of Language Revisited (w/ @mperlman.bsky.social @glupyan.bsky.social Koen de Reus & @limorraviv.bsky.social) Feature Review out now in #OpenAccess in @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social! #language #linguistics Paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

Despite their allure, “silver bullet” arguments (in which uniqueness of our species is defined by one explanatory factor) are untenable in light of modern biology. Many scholars now view language emergence as dependent on convergence of multiple facets (physical, cognitive, social, cultural). 4/n

Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n

What enables human language? A biocultural framework

Explaining the origins of language is a key challenge in understanding ourselves as a species. We present an empirical framework that draws on synergies across fields to facilitate robust studies of l...

science.org

Review on language evolution just published - haven't read properly yet but from a quick skim looks important! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...