The Truth About Social Learning Taught by Mother and Child Chimpanzees - From Mom, Not Dad!? The Roots of "Language" Imprinted in Primates - The Lineage of Learning That Connects to Humans

1. Introduction: Exploring the Origins of "Mother Tongue"

Children learning language from their mothers is a common sight in human society. But would you be surprised to hear that the same occurs with chimpanzees, our closest evolutionary relatives? A paper published in PLOS Biology on August 5, 2025, and an explanatory article on Phys.org provide a striking answer to this question.

2. Research Design and Fieldwork

The setting is Uganda's Kibale National Park. The research team focused on 22 wild chimpanzees from the Kanyawara community, all over 10 years old, and

• recorded vocalizations (such as grunts, barks, and whimpers)

• and non-vocal signals (like arm movements, postures, and gazes)
  in detail. They analyzed the similarity between relatives using the "vocal-visual combination count" for each individual as an index. The results showed a strong correlation with mothers and maternal relatives, while the correlation with paternal relatives was almost zero※1.

3. Why "Maternal"?

In chimpanzee society, mothers are the primary caregivers, and fathers do not participate in child-rearing. Children have the opportunity to constantly observe and imitate their mothers' vocalizations and gestures. In contrast, contact with fathers is limited, restricting learning channels. Researcher Joseph Mine states, "Each family has its own 'way of speaking.'"※1.

4. Social Media Reactions and Science Communication

• Science media like Cosmos Magazine also reported the news quickly※3.

• Scimex released a press release timed with the publication at 4:00 AM Australian time on August 6, with expert comments being published in succession※4.

• On X (formerly Twitter), researchers and general users posted comments like "Just like human mother tongue acquisition" and "A game changer in animal behavior studies," with the hashtag #ChimpComm trending. The Phys.org article recorded 43 shares within 24 hours of publication※2.

5. Evolutionary Implications

This study suggests the possibility that the transmission of communication styles through social learning was established before humans. This finding aligns with recent animal culture research※5 that views the origins of language not just as genetic but as "cultural."

6. Future Challenges

1. Longitudinal tracking from infancy to adolescence: Identifying the critical period for learning.

2. Learning pathways in male individuals: Do they relearn among peers after separating from their mothers?

3. Comparative species studies: Verifying evolutionary universality through comparisons with bonobos and gorillas.

7. Conclusion

The fact that chimpanzees learn "words" from their mothers reaffirms that the family, as the smallest unit, is the driving force of culture. Human language and the gentle gestures exchanged in distant forests are on the same continuum of social learning—this is the implication of this study.

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