Evolutionary Pragmatics

Abstract Humans are uniquely social creatures who engage in uniquely complex social interactions. These are typically enabled by natural languages such as English, Dutch, or Swahili. These natural languages evolve culturally over time. They were also enabled by a series of biological adaptations in the hominin lineage, which endowed us with capacities for language that other species seemingly lack. The possession of abilities for language, along with the mastery of natural languages, has played a constitutive role in the development of our species. Without language homo sapiens wouldn’t exist. The biological evolution of linguistic capacities, and the cultural evolution of natural languages, were driven by the communicative interactions of our ancestors. Since communicative interaction and the uses of natural language are the province of pragmatics, evolutionary pragmatics is the cornerstone of the study language evolution. This new field encompasses research on the evolution of abilities needed for pragmatics, and the role of pragmatics in the evolution of language. This volume brings together essays on a variety of topics that are central to the field of pragmatics, but are approached here from an evolutionary perspective. Topics covered include reference, ambiguity, common ground, communicative intentions, and language conventions. Numerous topics related to evolutionary pragmatics are introduced and discussed, ranging from baboon vocalizations and gestural communication in chimpanzees to formal models of the evolution of signalling systems and the co-evolution of pragmatics and grammar. Reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the field, the volume includes contributors from diverse disciplines including linguistics, philosophy, psychology, and primatology.