- Tursiops truncatus A dolphin surfs the wake of a research boat on the - near the . Français : Un Grand dauphin (Tursiops truncatus) surfe dans le sillage d'un bateau de recherche sur la Banana river, près du Centre spatial Kennedy. Magyar: Palackorrú delfin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A dusky dolphin named "Nox". (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

(NaturalNews) Dolphins have been granted "non-human personhood" status by the government of India, making India the first nation in the world to recognize the unique intelligence and self-awarenessof the cetacean mammals).

The decision was announced by India's Minister of the Environment and Forests which also outlawed captive dolphin shows. The ministry added that dolphins "should have their own specific rights." (SOURCE)

Dolphins are extremely intelligent mammals with a highly-developed social structure. Recent research shows that dolphins call each other by name and canremember the unique name whistles from old "friends" heard just one time 20 years ago.

Dolphins choose their own unique name -- a series of complex whistles -- before they reach one year of age. From that point forward, all the other dolphins in their social group call them by that unique name.