The Heptapods
Cephalopod-like aliens whose language rewrites human time perception.
They are cephalopod-like, seven-limbed beings who communicate using a complex written language of logograms, and their arrival triggers global efforts to decipher their intentions.
- species
- Heptapods
- known_for
- First contact with humanity; teaching a language that alters perception of time
- notable_members
- Abbott and Costello (nicknames given by physicist Ian Donnelly)
- origin
- Unknown (arrive in twelve spacecraft)
- field
- Extraterrestrial linguistics
Lore & Background
Twelve heptapod spacecraft appear over various locations on Earth, causing widespread panic. In the United States, linguist Louise Banks and physicist Ian Donnelly are recruited to study the craft above Montana. On board, they encounter two heptapods, nicknamed Abbott and Costello, who communicate through written logograms. As Banks studies their language, she begins experiencing flashback-like visions of her daughter, later revealed to be premonitions of future events. The heptapods' written language consists of phrases written with logograms, and their message is split across all twelve craft. One heptapod, Abbott, is mortally injured when a bomb planted by rogue soldiers explodes inside the Montana craft. The other, Costello, continues communicating with Banks. The heptapods eventually depart after the nations release their portions of the message, and Banks later publishes a book called The Universal Language, a guide to the heptapod language.
Reader's Guide
The heptapods are central to Arrival's exploration of communication with extraterrestrial intelligence. Their language, described as a 'weapon' or 'tool,' fundamentally alters humans' linear perception of time, allowing those who learn it to experience memories of future events. This concept drives the film's narrative, as Banks's premonitions reveal her future daughter Hannah, who will die from an incurable illness, and her relationship with Donnelly. The heptapods' arrival forces global collaboration, as their full message is split among twelve nations, and their departure follows the resolution of international tensions.
Did You Know?
- The heptapods are cephalopod-like, seven-limbed aliens nicknamed Abbott and Costello by physicist Ian Donnelly.
- Their written language consists of logograms, and learning it alters humans' linear perception of time.
- The heptapods' message is split across all twelve spacecraft, requiring international collaboration to decipher.
- One heptapod, Abbott, is mortally injured by a bomb planted by rogue soldiers inside the Montana craft.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes the Heptapod language so unusual?
Their logograms are non-linear, meaning the order in which symbols are read does not change their meaning. Learning the language fundamentally rewires a human speaker's perception of time, allowing them to experience past, present, and future as a single simultaneous block.
Why did the Heptapods come to Earth?
Their purpose, as revealed in the film, is to offer humanity a gift: the ability to perceive time non-linearly. In roughly three thousand years they will face a crisis and will need humanity's help in return, making this first contact a long-term mutual-aid arrangement.
What do the Heptapods look like physically?
They resemble enormous, translucent cephalopods with seven limbs and no visible eyes, moving within the bell-shaped craft they arrive in. They produce their language by squirts of dark ink that form circular logograms on a surface.
Who are Abbott and Costello in Arrival?
Those are the lighthearted nicknames that physicist Ian Donnelly assigns to the two Heptapods he works with during the first-contact negotiations. The names appear only as informal labels among the human team and carry no significance in the aliens' own culture.
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