Debate Magazine

Kiki and Bouba; Vic and Bob

Posted on the 07 August 2018 by Markwadsworth @Mark_Wadsworth

It would appear that I am not completely abnormal. When I watched Vic and Bob in the 1990s, I automatically - but wrongly - assumed that the small sharp one was "Vic" and the big round one was "Bob". Even their surnames follow this pattern, "Reeves" sounds sharp and "Mortimer" sounds ponderous. It took me years to remember to remember that they were the other way round:
Kiki and Bouba; Vic and Bob
I saw an experiment run on telly a while back, I think it was Supershoppers looking at brand names. Members of the public were asked which of these two shapes was "Kiki" and which was "Bouba" and most thought the pointy one was "Kiki" and the blobby one was "Bouba", which is exactly how I would have answered. Possible explanations for this are on Wiki.
Kiki and Bouba; Vic and Bob


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