The gradual coevolution of syntactic combinatorics and categorization under the effects of human self-domestication: a proposal (original) (raw)

Abstract

This paper builds on a previous proposal that the gradual emergence of syntax in language evolution was engaged in a feedback loop with the effects of Human Self-Domestication (HSD), both processes contributing to enhanced connectivity in the cortico-striatal networks, which is the mechanism for suppressing reactive physical aggression, the hallmark of HSD, but also the mechanism of cross-modality, relevant for metaphoricity and syntax more generally. In this paper, we aim to bridge the gap between these neurobiological changes and the changes facilitated, or even promoted, by the gradual complexification of grammars. We propose that increased cross-modality associated with the brain modifications described above would have enabled and supported, more specifically, a feedback loop between categorization abilities relevant for vocabulary building and the gradual emergence of syntactic structure, including the core combinatorial operation in natural languages, such as Merge. In brief,...

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