Our ability to understand the syntax of complex sentences is one of the most difficult language skills to acquire. In 2019, research had revealed a correlation between being particularly proficient in ...

Parrots, hummingbirds and songbirds – which are able to learn complex, repetitive songs – have provided scientists with a unique insight into the origins of syntax, the rules that govern human speech.

Human language is based on syntax, a complex set of rules about how words can be combined. In theory, the emergence of syntactic communication might have been a comparatively straightforward process.