Elephant Talks - Scientists Seek Answers

An elephant at a South Korean zoo has attracted the attention of an international research team amid reports that the animal can talk. According to zoo officials, 20-year old "Kosik" can vocalize at least seven words in Korean and the scientists are eager to learn how.

Twenty-year-old Kosik may be living proof that an elephant never forgets.

According to his keepers at the Everland theme park in Yong-in, Kosik has remembered and can vocalize at least seven words in Korean, words such as "hi" and "lie down" or "good."

Scientists like Dr. Daniel Mietchen from the University of Jena in Germany want to know more and they've come to the zoo to see what makes Kosik tick... or talk.

[Dr. Daniel Mietchen, Biological Scientist, University of Jena]:
"As far as we know Kosik is the only living elephant capable of this, but there are other elephants imitated other sounds like sounds of truck or other elephants."

The scientists say that through Kosik they might be able to prove that elephants are capable of learning language, although they say it's unlikely he understands the meaning of the words he expresses.

According to his keeper, Kim Jong-kap, Kosik's pronunciation has improved a great deal since 2006, when Kim first heard him.

[Kim Jong-kap, Kosik's Trainer]:
"At first, he had made a simple sound, not some specific word. However, as time went by, he was vocalizing some words accurately."

For zoo visitors, Kosik is a huge attraction in more ways than one. And for the scientists, the work ahead could break new ground... just as long as they can keep Kosik talking.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Elephant
• Talks
• Jena
• Germany
• Scientist
• Answer
• Zee
• South Korea
• Korean
• Kosik
• vocalize
• Everland
• imitate

[givebirthathome]

Well they said that parrots didn't understand the words they use, but Irene Pepperberg demonstrated that they can answer questions correctly in experimental situations..like if a group of blocks are the same in color and shape, but different in size, the parrot could answer the question, "What's different?" , Size, correctly, as well as other groups that differed in color, or shape, instead.

If parrots can, why not elephants?

[hobo59]

Well he's a hell of a lot better then me. I can't say anything in Korean !

[ThePhantomThylacine]

Kosik is a lot like Batyr (another elephant that could 'talk'.) :)

[bonyoldbehind]

@imartash African and Asian elephants use different sounds rumbling vs chirping, an african elephant once learned to chirp while liviing with asians.

[Kirbyblue96]

he didn't say hi he said lie down

[werbnnerf]

That's so cool!!

[imartash]

Really? There are elephants imitating other elephant sounds? Wondrous :))

[mynameisgyw]

Elephant : WOOOONNG!

[fluentread]

That zoo official leads the world in linguistic training. Someone give him a doctorate.

[givebirthathome]

@kbundy023 Have you seen the pictures that elephants are painting now? No joke, they have been giving them easels and paint brushes...they make pretty nice abstracts, and seem to have their own styles. I think they know what they are doing,

its just human ego that makes people automatically deny it.

[paullesoudeur]

@uzuragakure now thats cool ....would love to hear it hahaha

[uzuragakure]

I can fart Obama's name.