A Study of a Remarkable Bonobo Named Kanzi Shows Apes May Play Make Believe February 6, 2026 · 4:19 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered By Nathan Rott The ability to imagine — to play pretend — has long been thought to be unique to humans. A recent study suggests certain apes may be able to as well. Scientists have long suspected some animals likewise have the ability to imagine and play pretend. NPR’s Nate Rott reports on a new study that shows at least one can. It’s important to note before we really get into it that the subject of this new study is a pretty remarkable ape. This isn’t his first time on NPR. Kanzi is a bonobo, a smaller cousin of the chimpanzee. He doesn’t use hand… Kanzi — he’s the world’s most famous bonobo and a bit of a show off. But Kanzi’s little sister… Kanzi was raised in captivity and lived that way the rest of his life. He died last year at the age of 44. But what got him full-page pictures in Time magazine and National Geographic, with an accompanying video segment for the latter, was his ability to communicate with humans using symbols and his comprehension of the English language. Look right at the camera. Good boy. You’re doing so good. Just a couple more. I realize as they talk to Kanzi, he understands almost everything they say…. Kanzi was born in captivity on October 28, 1980, in Atlanta, Georgia, to Lorel and Bosandjo at Yerkes Field Station at Emory University in 1980. Lorel was later moved to the Jacksonville Zoo in Florida, while Bosandjo still currently resides at Yerkes. Within hours of Kanzi’s birth, he was adopted by his adoptive mother Matata, a wild-born bonobo who originated from Zaire. In 1985, Kanzi and his sister Panbanisha moved to the Language Research Center at Georgia State University. They were later relocated to the Great Ape Trust, in Des Moines, Iowa. According to Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, a primatologist who has studied the bonobo since the 1990s, Kanzi exhibited advanced linguistic aptitude. Kanzi was notable for his cognitive ability and apparent capacity to understand and manipulate language. He is believed to have been the first non-human great ape to comprehend spoken English. He was also the subject of research into his understanding and usage of symbols to communicate, usually through lexigrams and partial ASL. The information that researchers gathered from Kanzi made a significant impact on the fields of linguistics and cognitive science. Kanzi’s behavior and abilities have been the topic of research published in scientific journals, as well as reports in popular media. Kanzi died March 18, 2025, in Des Moines, Iowa, at the age of 44.
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