Bonobos have mastered the art of babytalk, new research shows

New observation of 'peeping' sounds made by humankind's closest living relative suggest a possible evolutionary origin for human language

The bonobo or pygmy chimpanzee - humankind's closest living relative - has mastered the human art of babytalk. That is, it makes a range of sounds that must be interpreted in context. It may not be language, but it parallels those sounds that human infants make to communicate before they learn to use words, according to new research by Zanna Clay, a psychologist at the University of Birmingham.