ABSTRACT
What are Names?—It has been said that the sole condition for the enormous mental development of man as compared to the lower animals is in his invention of language. Perhaps it would be better to say his extension of language, for even animals have the elements of language. Psychologically considered, language is an association, such as we have described, between common objects, actions, or feelings and certain sounds, visual symbols, or as in the case of Helen Keller, tactual sensations. The great fact that led to the extension of language was its marvellous usefulness. One has only to think of the great difficulty, the enormous waste of time and energy, that we experience in attempting to communicate with a person who does not understand our language, in order to see something of the significance of language for the race.
