Communication
Related: expression - language - mass media - technology - media
Definition
Communication is the process of exchanging information, usually via common system of symbols. It takes a wide variety of forms, from two people having a face-to-face conversation, to hand signals, to messages sent over global telecommunication networks. The process of communication is what allows us to interact with other people; without it, we would be unable to share knowledge or experiences with anything outside of ourselves. Common forms of communication include speaking, writing, gestures, and broadcasting.
The expressive hand, a phenomenon exclusive to the primates (most especially humans) is perhaps the "original communication tool" which can convey caring, hatred, construction, destruction, aproval or condemnation. To the deaf among humans, it is their "way out"; to the blind, it is their way in. To the artist, it is their way through; to the writer, it is the way with.
The Latin root word of "communication" is comunicare, which has three possible meanings
1. "to make common", which is probably derived from either 2 or 3
2. cum + munus, i.e. having gifts to share in a mutual donation.
3. cum + munire, i.e. building together a defense, like the walls of a city
--http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication, Feb 2004