The Secret Language of Twins

Idioglossia:

Twin Talk wrote:

About forty percent of twins, generally monozygotic or identical twins, will develop some form of autonomous language, using nicknames, gestures, abbreviations or terminology that they only use with each other. While parents and siblings can often discern the meaning, the twins generally don't use the terms with others.

http://multiples.about.com/od/twintoddlers/a/twintalk.htm

I've heard of this before. I doubt, however, that being twins has anything to do with the development of their funny language. I think it's probably just because they are the same age and are being brought in the same place.

I mentioned it because good friends of mine growing up were Scott & Greg Sullivan, identical twins who didn't speak English until they were 4 but developed an apparently extensive and coherent language with each other.

When I knew them they'd forgotten their private language, and couldn't tell me anything about it.  I heard the story from their mother.

Ever since then I've wondered how elaborate, how complete such languages are.  Whether there's any similarities from twin-pair to twin-pair.  Whether there's any grammar.

Steven Pinker would claim this indicates a 'language gene' with certain built-in grammar and syntax -- but from what I've read, the answers to all of my questions are "no" so Pinker would be wrong on this.

Still, an interesting study.

I know people thrown together by unusual circumstances, such as slaves from different regions or workers working overseas -- if they share no common language, tend to develop pidgins with basic reverse word-order grammar (like Yoda) and words based on common Indo-European roots.  But of course newborn twins wouldn't have that background (although they would hear language around them).

Weird stories abound.