Why do we understand strange language the first time we contact?

Have you ever experienced suddenly you can understand the meaning of some words in a foreign language, even if you have never spoken or been taught about that language?

Why can we understand a strange language at first contact?

There is an explanation for this phenomenon. That's because the way brain cells are structured and systematic . In fact, when we were young, brain cells made in a way that made it easier for us to understand 'symbolic sound' (sound symbolism) . But as we grow, we gradually lose this ability and then we start learning about the first language - our mother tongue.

In a recent report, it was found that the majority of participants in the test experiment could correctly guess the meaning of foreign words that they had never known. The test will give each person 2 different words and 2 meanings.

This trend continues to be true even when those words have never been shown. In a well-known linguistic examination, scientists assigned objects with a round shape to the phrase "baluma" and sharp-shaped objects with the phrase "takete" . When the participants think about these terms, in their brains they tend to choose round objects such as 'baluma' and sharp objects as 'takete' as originally intended by the scientists. Learning even for those who did not know the meaning given by these phrases. Similarly, the participants also tend to choose the word 'tobi' to describe large objects, while the word 'kekere' describes small objects. In other words, the dimension and size of the object seems to have been expressed in the sound of the speech itself, not the meaning of the word.

But how did all this happen? In the area of ​​symbolic sound (sound symbolism), the sound itself and the melody of words are enough for us to understand the meaning of the word itself. This is based on how our brain arranges sound to make semantics. Basically, the activity of 'symbolic sound' reflects the movement of the mouth when we pronounce different words.

When we were young, brain cells formed in a way that made it easier for us to understand 'symbolic sound' (sound symbolism).

In detail, for example, large / small, the sound of symbolic languages ​​will show the size and physical properties through the pronunciation of those words. This is an area in linguistics that stands out by the termed iconicity . For example, when we say 'grand' (our language means big), our mouths will open as large as to reproduce the size of the object we want to mention. Similarly, when we say 'petit' , the range of sounds coming from our mouths shrinks, creating a feeling reminiscent of a small object.

But things don't stop there, a recent study shows the link between ' synaesthesia ' and 'symbolic sound' . Accompanying is a phenomenon that affects about 1% of the world's population, which occurs when stimulating a receptor or cognitive pathway that leads to a stimulating response of another receptor or cognitive pathway.

In the field of language, people who have the 'accompanying feeling' when hearing a word will automatically see the color or taste the taste or the smell. Cross-links in the brain that are responsible for showing the 'accompanying feeling' are thought by scientists to cause an increase in the number of nerve fibers in the brain. These nerve fibers bind to separate regions in the brain together.

Research shows that in people with sensory phenomena it is very good at guessing words in unknown languages ​​in a large / small, noisy / quiet range. While in the group of people there is no sense of good attachment to guessing the meaning in the upper / lower range, morning / evening.

But those with a sense of sensation will guess the meaning of the word better than those who do not have this phenomenon. Scientists believe that there is a connection between sympathetic sensation and symbolic sound. Accompanying sensations will promote the sensitivity of the symbolic sound phenomenon inside our bodies. This process will connect the auditory and visual parts, combining with the neural connections of the sensory phenomenon.

Scientists intend that future research will continue to deepen their understanding of these links. But they are ready to conclude that, in newborns, there are enough cross-linked brain connections , and similar to the feeling of attachment, they will help create the ability to guess the meaning in the ' symbolic sound' phenomenon.

A strange phenomenon is that the more intensive we learn about our mother tongue, the more cross-linked the links are and the less sensitive we are to foreign languages.

Scientists believe that in people with a feeling of attachment, cross-links still continue to exist. That's because in their genetic genes there are factors that prevent the process of cross-linking.