What’s up with wahoo? exploring baboon vocalizations with speech science techniques

Berthomier, F., Sawallis, T., Fagot, J., & Boë, L.J. (2017). What’s up with Wahoo? Exploring Baboon Vocalizations with Speech Science Techniques. in Boe, J.L., Fagot, J., Perrier, P. & Schwartz, J.L. (eds.). Origins of human language: continuities and splits with nonhuman primates. Peter Lang (101-136).

Astract – The baboon repertoire includes around fifteen vocalizations. One, wahoo, is referred to onomatopoetically, and is composed of two syllables and three sounds. We analyze from both acoustic and articulatory points of view why this vocalization is perceived phonetically as [wa.u]. This study corroborates the hypothesis of two equivalence levels: one acoustic-perceptual and the other relating to the production mechanism of the baboon and man.