On the Origin of Ambiguity in Efficient Communication

We investigate both the locus of ambiguity in the architecture of language and the origin of ambiguity in natural communication. We 1) locate ambiguity at the externalization branch of language, 2) provide a rigorous, general definition of ambiguity through the concept of logical irreversibility, quantifying the amount of ambiguity within the framework of Shannon’s information theory, and 3) provide a proof of concept that the constraints acting over a natural code force ambiguity to emerge. Accordingly, the emergence of ambiguous codes is an unavoidable byproduct of efficient communication.