Sound-shape correspondences in macaques reveal evolutionary roots of sound symbolism

Humans reliably associate certain speech-like sounds with visual shapes, most notably in the Bouba-Kiki Effect, where rounded and spiky shapes are matched with the sounds Bouba and Kiki, respectively.

Humans reliably associate certain speech-like sounds with visual shapes, most notably in the Bouba-Kiki Effect, where rounded and spiky shapes are matched with the sounds Bouba and Kiki, respectively. Although often linked to language and culture, evidence from preverbal infants…