Thursday, January 05, 2006


A REALLY LIVING LANGUAGE


Interesting fact observed during my utterly biased investigation of the grand-twins Mitsuki and Miyasa (identical): they have their own language. In my professional capacity as grandfather I have dubbed this new language Twinlingo, which the two speak to each other and which their mother Kasumi understands a bit of (in its old form), and their elder sister Kaya does too, but there's no way to keep up with the growth of a spontaneously generated and unwritten language created by a couple of not yet two-year olds who have no real need to speak importantly to anyone but each other, and for whom gestures and simple sounds suffice for all communication with the many non-twins of their world, thus far at least. Nor do the twins mind at all that they so easily manage to stay linguistically ahead of the rest of us, or that we understand progressively less of what they're saying to each other. When dealing with us they simply use baby talk if they have to, which works fine, gets them food and toys and stuff, which is all they need from us.

Meanwhile the rest of the twintourage is falling behind in Twinlingo, colloquially known in our house as M&Mese. Developing a dictionary of the language would be pointless, since the book would be outdated in a week, as in Twinlingo the process of linguistic evolution is greatly accelerated; even this morning's meaning is not necessarily this afternoon's meaning. It's a lot like politics. Unlike those around them, however, the twins instinctively know the new meaning and get along fine in their mirror world.

And I suspect they find the utterly predictable Japanese and English languages we adult humans use on them very boring and conventional, full of tacit assumptions that should have been put aside no later than yesterday, as is their own practice, reflective of their ongoing growth. As compared to us stodgy quotidians.

I got to hear a bit of Twinlingo when the blurry duo visited on Monday; it sounds quite elegant in its polished smoothness, having done away with all the angular sort of sounds, in the way that water works on rocks, the twins preferring a rolling sophistication more like the wind itself, sort of like an improved version of the US southern accent with all impedances removed.

I'd try to get an audio file of it up here, but that would involve the initial use of Japanese or English, at which M and M just smile and look at each other knowingly.

4 comments:

Joy Des Jardins said...

Twinlingo...yes, it's true Robert. And, it is amazing. I have identical twin girls...33 years old now. When they were small they communicated in this most fascinating way...actually, still do quite often. The connection that twins have is something to see. Have you been witness to their psychic moments? My girls still have them...when they say the exact same thing at the same time...or go clothes shopping and get the very same outfit....even when they live hundreds of miles apart. When they lived at home, they use to wake up in the morning and go for the very same outfit to wear to school...produced some lovely bickering. As adults they are incredibly close and always there for one another...and for me, that's what counts. They have an annate sense of what's happening with each other, and they're ALWAYS plugged into that. Oh what fun you have ahead Robert. I can see you're going to enjoy every moment with those beautiful girls.

Robert Brady said...

Thanks for the clues, joy; I do have much delight to look forward to... And I'll share what I discover.

Mary Lou said...

There have actually been studies on twin-speak. and it is more communicated through psychic channels. THere is still an awful lot to learn about it though. Funny, that all the cases I have heard about are female, identical twins! dont males have this too?

Robert Brady said...

I grew up in my early years with male identical twin best friends, and I don't ever remember any twinlingo between them. Kaya speaks a bit of M&M too; she interprets for me.