Sign linguistics
General Linguistics 278
Sign Languages as Natural Languages:
The modality of sign languages:
o They are visual-spatial languages, whereas spoken languages
are oral-aural languages
o Consequences for use = turntaking
o Consequences for linguistic form and structure:
Use of space
Multichannel use of the body = more simultaneous
organization
Role of iconicity: where the form of the sign resembles
the thing referred to
Iconicity:
o There are gradations of iconicity
o Some signs are iconic but their meaning is only guessable in a
context (non-transparent) e.g. WOMEN, MAN
o Some signs are transparent, e.g. COOK
o Some signs are very low in iconicity or totally arbitrary, e.g.
PAP
Simultaneous organization in sign languages
Level of the sign:
o 4 manual parameters: Location of Articulation, Handshape,
Orientation and Movement
o Non-manual components: Oral components/Mouth gestures
and Spoken components/Mouthings
Level of the sentence:
o Grammatical Level = indication of sentence type by non-
manual markers
e.g. eyebrows raised of a yes or no question
-------------------------er
WOMEN CAR-DRIVE?
o Sign languages = more simultaneous
o Spoken languages = more sequential
Status of phonology:
o Phonology as we know it from the study of spoken languages
deal with the study of element that are used to convey
meaning difference in languages
o Thus the parameters of a sign are crucial for making such
distinctions
o So we find minimal pairs in sign languages within each
parameter.
SASL KNOW vs REMEMBER are different in handshape
only
, Sign systems:
o Definition = Combination (simplified) structure of a spoken
language + signs (mostly taken from the sign language.
o Function = teaching the spoken language with the function as
a bridging system
o Official and non-official forms of sign systems (e.g. Sign
Supported English)
o Example:
Notice the differences between SSE & SASL
“the man stands on the car”
SASL= CAR CI MAN CI “man-on-car”
SSE = THE MAN STAND+S ON THE CAR
Finger spelling
o Definition: representation of the letters of a spoken language
with which names and words can be spelled out.
o Support system of a spoken language and not an actual
language
o Function: - for proper names
when sign is not known
words from a different language
acronyms (e.g., Wc)
In the past finger spelling was the only means of communication
Sign written system
o No generally accepted written form
o Transcription systems (or notation systems) and writing
systems
o Transcription systems:
the choice depends on your research question:
1. BTS: acquisition;
2. HamNoSys, Stoke Notation: phonology/phonetics, also
used in dictionaries;
3. glosses (+ extra information): syntax
o Signwriting was intended for daily use but most deaf people
don’t use it
SUMMARY
Sign languages are fully-fledged, natural languages articulated in the
visual-spatial modality in contrast to spoken languages, which make
use of the oral-aural modality. Sign languages are not derived from
spoken languages but have their own lexicon and grammar. Signs are
produced on the body or in a three-dimensional space in front of the body,
the signing space, which is different from pantomime, where there are
no such restrictions and the whole body may be used. Signs produced in
isolation, that is, outside of the context of a sentence, are said to be in
their basic or citation form. The meaning of a sign is usually given using
a gloss that consists of one or more words from a spoken language.
,Every sign is made up of four different basic elements or parameters:
the handshape, the location, the movement, and the orientation.
Some signs are produced simultaneously with a non-manual
component, that is, an element that is not articulated by the hands but
by the mouth, face, or upper body. Words or parts of words that are
articulated are called mouthings, while mouth movements that are not
derived from words are called mouth gestures. All these elements are
combined in signs, and signs in turn are combined to form sentences,
which demonstrates that sign languages display compositionality, an
essential property of natural languages.
People who are born deaf or who become deaf in their first year are called
prelingually deaf. If these deaf people use a sign language on a regular
basis, then they are members of the Deaf community. Most deaf
children grow up in hearing families. When these children are isolated
from other deaf people, they may develop a form of homesign, that is, a
manual communication system that is used within a single family. A fully-
fledged sign language can only develop when deaf people have regular
contact with each other. In some rural communities in which there is a
higher percentage of deafness, a village sign language may emerge.
A sign language is different from a sign system. In a sign system (or
manually coded language), individual signs of a sign language are
used, but the sentences follow the grammar of the surrounding spoken
language. Sometimes invented signs are added. Sign systems are often
used in the communication between deaf people and hearing people who
do not know the sign language well. Often, they are also used in the
education of deaf children.
The manual alphabet (used for fingerspelling) allows a signer to
convey concepts or names from the spoken language for which no signs
exist. Different types of manual alphabets exist, but they are not really a
part of the sign language. Gestures that are used by hearing people,
often in combination with speech, are commonly integrated into the sign
language. A prominent example is pointing which is used in all sign
languages and is glossed as index. Among other things, an index can be
used for the localization of referents.
Research into sign languages still has to produce more evidence so that
we can determine which linguistic universals are modality-specific,
that is, hold true for both signed and spoken languages, and whether
there are also universals that are specific to sign languages. There is no
generally accepted sign writing system for sign languages. In research,
use is made of different notation systems in order to transcribe signed
utterances. Glosses, the translation of a sign in a spoken language,
provide information on the meaning of a sign but not on its form. There
are clear differences between individual sign languages in their structure
and lexicon despite the significant proportion of iconic signs. Iconic signs
are not necessarily identical across sign languages. Also, many signs are
arbitrary. Not every sign language uses the same handshapes, and the
grammatical rules are also diverse. Sign language typology is a young
research area, but there are still too few sign languages described to be
able to come up with a comprehensive typological picture. Existing
, descriptions of sign languages are usually descriptive but are sometimes
used prescriptively. The first step in describing a sign language is
usually making a dictionary or sign book. There are a number of
pedagogical grammars being used in education.
Bilingualism and Deaf Education
Communities:
o 2 (or more) groups of monolinguals in 1 country (e.g. Belgium)
o Everyone uses both languages (e.g. Wales in the UK)
o A part of the community is monolingual, the other is part
bilingual (e.g. Canada)
Deaf people are usually (at least) Bilingual (1 spoken & 1 sign
language)
Sign languages and spoken languages are different:
o In society = role and status
o For the deaf individual (Accessibility!):
Reading and writing in a spoken language
Deaf adult’s use of SASL may be limited
The history of Deaf Education:
First deaf school:
o +/- 1760 in Paris, France: Charles Michel de I’Epee
Before 1760: deaf education was private/individual
Emphasis of teaching:
o Learning to speak + sometimes writing and reading
o E.g. 16th century , the De Velasquez Family in Spain
Manual methods vs Oral Methods
Manual method
o Charles Michel de I’Epee
o Use of signs “to make French Visible”
o “Signes Methodiques” (e.g. signs to indicate
Masculine/Feminine)
Oral Method
o Heinicke: “German Method”
o Learning to speak and speech read without using manual
forms of communication
1880: Milan conference supports oralism
o 2 of the 8 resolutions:
o 1. The Convention, considering the incontestable superiority
of articulation over signs in restoring the deaf-mute to society
and giving him a fuller knowledge of language, declares that
the oral method should be preferred to that of signs in
the education and instruction of deaf-mutes.
o 2. The Convention, considering that the simultaneous use of
articulation and signs have the disadvantage of injuring
General Linguistics 278
Sign Languages as Natural Languages:
The modality of sign languages:
o They are visual-spatial languages, whereas spoken languages
are oral-aural languages
o Consequences for use = turntaking
o Consequences for linguistic form and structure:
Use of space
Multichannel use of the body = more simultaneous
organization
Role of iconicity: where the form of the sign resembles
the thing referred to
Iconicity:
o There are gradations of iconicity
o Some signs are iconic but their meaning is only guessable in a
context (non-transparent) e.g. WOMEN, MAN
o Some signs are transparent, e.g. COOK
o Some signs are very low in iconicity or totally arbitrary, e.g.
PAP
Simultaneous organization in sign languages
Level of the sign:
o 4 manual parameters: Location of Articulation, Handshape,
Orientation and Movement
o Non-manual components: Oral components/Mouth gestures
and Spoken components/Mouthings
Level of the sentence:
o Grammatical Level = indication of sentence type by non-
manual markers
e.g. eyebrows raised of a yes or no question
-------------------------er
WOMEN CAR-DRIVE?
o Sign languages = more simultaneous
o Spoken languages = more sequential
Status of phonology:
o Phonology as we know it from the study of spoken languages
deal with the study of element that are used to convey
meaning difference in languages
o Thus the parameters of a sign are crucial for making such
distinctions
o So we find minimal pairs in sign languages within each
parameter.
SASL KNOW vs REMEMBER are different in handshape
only
, Sign systems:
o Definition = Combination (simplified) structure of a spoken
language + signs (mostly taken from the sign language.
o Function = teaching the spoken language with the function as
a bridging system
o Official and non-official forms of sign systems (e.g. Sign
Supported English)
o Example:
Notice the differences between SSE & SASL
“the man stands on the car”
SASL= CAR CI MAN CI “man-on-car”
SSE = THE MAN STAND+S ON THE CAR
Finger spelling
o Definition: representation of the letters of a spoken language
with which names and words can be spelled out.
o Support system of a spoken language and not an actual
language
o Function: - for proper names
when sign is not known
words from a different language
acronyms (e.g., Wc)
In the past finger spelling was the only means of communication
Sign written system
o No generally accepted written form
o Transcription systems (or notation systems) and writing
systems
o Transcription systems:
the choice depends on your research question:
1. BTS: acquisition;
2. HamNoSys, Stoke Notation: phonology/phonetics, also
used in dictionaries;
3. glosses (+ extra information): syntax
o Signwriting was intended for daily use but most deaf people
don’t use it
SUMMARY
Sign languages are fully-fledged, natural languages articulated in the
visual-spatial modality in contrast to spoken languages, which make
use of the oral-aural modality. Sign languages are not derived from
spoken languages but have their own lexicon and grammar. Signs are
produced on the body or in a three-dimensional space in front of the body,
the signing space, which is different from pantomime, where there are
no such restrictions and the whole body may be used. Signs produced in
isolation, that is, outside of the context of a sentence, are said to be in
their basic or citation form. The meaning of a sign is usually given using
a gloss that consists of one or more words from a spoken language.
,Every sign is made up of four different basic elements or parameters:
the handshape, the location, the movement, and the orientation.
Some signs are produced simultaneously with a non-manual
component, that is, an element that is not articulated by the hands but
by the mouth, face, or upper body. Words or parts of words that are
articulated are called mouthings, while mouth movements that are not
derived from words are called mouth gestures. All these elements are
combined in signs, and signs in turn are combined to form sentences,
which demonstrates that sign languages display compositionality, an
essential property of natural languages.
People who are born deaf or who become deaf in their first year are called
prelingually deaf. If these deaf people use a sign language on a regular
basis, then they are members of the Deaf community. Most deaf
children grow up in hearing families. When these children are isolated
from other deaf people, they may develop a form of homesign, that is, a
manual communication system that is used within a single family. A fully-
fledged sign language can only develop when deaf people have regular
contact with each other. In some rural communities in which there is a
higher percentage of deafness, a village sign language may emerge.
A sign language is different from a sign system. In a sign system (or
manually coded language), individual signs of a sign language are
used, but the sentences follow the grammar of the surrounding spoken
language. Sometimes invented signs are added. Sign systems are often
used in the communication between deaf people and hearing people who
do not know the sign language well. Often, they are also used in the
education of deaf children.
The manual alphabet (used for fingerspelling) allows a signer to
convey concepts or names from the spoken language for which no signs
exist. Different types of manual alphabets exist, but they are not really a
part of the sign language. Gestures that are used by hearing people,
often in combination with speech, are commonly integrated into the sign
language. A prominent example is pointing which is used in all sign
languages and is glossed as index. Among other things, an index can be
used for the localization of referents.
Research into sign languages still has to produce more evidence so that
we can determine which linguistic universals are modality-specific,
that is, hold true for both signed and spoken languages, and whether
there are also universals that are specific to sign languages. There is no
generally accepted sign writing system for sign languages. In research,
use is made of different notation systems in order to transcribe signed
utterances. Glosses, the translation of a sign in a spoken language,
provide information on the meaning of a sign but not on its form. There
are clear differences between individual sign languages in their structure
and lexicon despite the significant proportion of iconic signs. Iconic signs
are not necessarily identical across sign languages. Also, many signs are
arbitrary. Not every sign language uses the same handshapes, and the
grammatical rules are also diverse. Sign language typology is a young
research area, but there are still too few sign languages described to be
able to come up with a comprehensive typological picture. Existing
, descriptions of sign languages are usually descriptive but are sometimes
used prescriptively. The first step in describing a sign language is
usually making a dictionary or sign book. There are a number of
pedagogical grammars being used in education.
Bilingualism and Deaf Education
Communities:
o 2 (or more) groups of monolinguals in 1 country (e.g. Belgium)
o Everyone uses both languages (e.g. Wales in the UK)
o A part of the community is monolingual, the other is part
bilingual (e.g. Canada)
Deaf people are usually (at least) Bilingual (1 spoken & 1 sign
language)
Sign languages and spoken languages are different:
o In society = role and status
o For the deaf individual (Accessibility!):
Reading and writing in a spoken language
Deaf adult’s use of SASL may be limited
The history of Deaf Education:
First deaf school:
o +/- 1760 in Paris, France: Charles Michel de I’Epee
Before 1760: deaf education was private/individual
Emphasis of teaching:
o Learning to speak + sometimes writing and reading
o E.g. 16th century , the De Velasquez Family in Spain
Manual methods vs Oral Methods
Manual method
o Charles Michel de I’Epee
o Use of signs “to make French Visible”
o “Signes Methodiques” (e.g. signs to indicate
Masculine/Feminine)
Oral Method
o Heinicke: “German Method”
o Learning to speak and speech read without using manual
forms of communication
1880: Milan conference supports oralism
o 2 of the 8 resolutions:
o 1. The Convention, considering the incontestable superiority
of articulation over signs in restoring the deaf-mute to society
and giving him a fuller knowledge of language, declares that
the oral method should be preferred to that of signs in
the education and instruction of deaf-mutes.
o 2. The Convention, considering that the simultaneous use of
articulation and signs have the disadvantage of injuring
