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symboling  

Definition

  • In its simplest definition, a symbol is a thing or action that represents another thing or action, and anthropologists agree that symboling is the unique cognitive capacity that allows advanced primates to have culture and to communicate their cultural concepts. Although they are used as synonyms, as verbs “symbolize” and “symbol” differ: to symbolize means to use existing concepts as symbols, and some higher nonhuman primates demonstrate this ability. [Source: Encyclopedia of Anthropology; Symboling]

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https://concepts.sagepub.com/social-science/concept/symboling

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