Sign Language

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HealthWiki > Disabled Village Children > Chapter 31: Hearing Loss and Communication > Sign Language

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In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

In most villages and communities people use and understand many gestures or signs made with their hands. Most of these signs are "common sense", or look something like the things they represent. Some children’s games use hand signs. For example:

“Here’s the church.”		“And here’s the steeple.”
“Open the doors.”
		“And see all the people.”

When a family has a child with hearing loss, they begin to use the local signs and also to invent new ones of their own. For example, at a village rehabilitation center in Mexico, a family arrived on muleback with their 6 year old son. The boy got nervous and wanted to go home. So he pulled on his father’s shirt sleeve and made these sounds and signs:

YOU	and	ME	LET’S GO (home)	RIDING THE MULE,	PLEASE!
				Mu!	Unh!

The family had begun to figure out its own sign language, without having been taught it. The boy himself had made up the sign for RIDING the MULE .

The sign language that families develop is usually not very complete, and communicating is often still difficult. However, people have joined together to create sign languages which are complete languages. There are hundreds of different sign languages, but there are 3 main types:

BOOK

• National and regional sign languages. In nearly all countries, people with hearing loss have created their own sign languages which they use to communicate. Different hand signs represent different things, actions, and ideas. The structure (grammar) of these languages is different from the spoken language, and may be difficult for hearing people to learn. These languages are preferred by people with complete hearing loss since birth. Examples are American Sign Language (ASL), used in the USA and Canada, and Mexican Sign Language.
• Sign languages based on spoken languages. These languages have the same organization and grammar as the local spoken language. They are easier for hearing persons to learn and for persons whose hearing loss began after they learned to speak. People will sign and speak at the same time, so they are not signing a complete sign language, just supporting their speech with some signs.

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• Finger spelling. Each word is spelled out with hand signs that represent the letters of the local alphabet. This method of “writing in the air” takes longer but is exact. It is easier for persons to learn who can already read and write. For English, some countries use a 2-handed system and others use a one-handed system. Try to learn the system that is most used in your country.

Many people combine these 3 systems. With other people with hearing loss they use mostly the first, with hearing persons or a translator they use mostly the second, and finger spell words that don’t have signs. When communicating with someone who does not know sign language, they can write down what they need to say—or use a letterboard.

Learning to sign

If possible, contact the Association of the Deaf in your country, and see if you can get a guidebook to sign language adapted to your local area or spoken language. If this is not possible, you can use the local signs and gestures, and invent more signs of your own.

On the next few pages we give ideas for making up signs, and examples for common words. Most are signs used in American Sign Language. You will want to change them to fit the gestures, customs, and language of your area. Here are some ideas:

• Choose signs that will not offend the local people. (People with hearing loss already have a difficult time being accepted.) Here are some examples:

In the USA a pointing finger is used to indicate different persons (me, you, her, them).		In some countries it is not polite to point a finger, so an open hand is used.		In other places even pointing with an open hand is not polite, and people point with their lips.
		YOU ME		HER
In the signed alphabet used in the USA and Canada the letter “T” is made like this. However, in many countries, this is an offensive gesture.		Therefore, in this book we also use the “T” sign from Spanish and Danish.		Also avoid confusion. For example, the sign for “WHERE” in the USA is a common gesture for “NO” in Mexico.

• Use local signs. If people in your area already have a gesture or sign for something, use that instead of a new or foreign one. For example:

The American sign for NO is this:	Some countries use this sign for NO:	In Jamaica NO and NOT are often said by a negative look and shake or tilt of the head.
		NO, NOT ME

The American sign for SLEEP is this:	In Nepal this sign is used for SLEEP. It is understood almost everywhere.

• Use hand shape, position, movement, and direction to make different signs. The expression on the face also adds to meaning. For example, here are signs for MOTHER:

in Brazil	in Australia	in Spain	in Thailand

• Try to make signs look like the things or actions they represent. To do this you can use a combination of hand shapes and movements.

TREE	DISH	POCKET	BABY	TURTLE

• Figure out patterns and series of similar signs for related things and actions, and for opposites.
  For example:

STAND	SIT DOWN	JUMP	PUSH	PULL

See other signs with fingers as legs in "Examples of Signs".

• Learn new signs by pointing to things.

WHAT	(is the) SIGN	FOR	(Point to object.)	DOG

Or if you can read and write, use finger spelling.
WHAT	(is the) SIGN	FOR	D	O	G

• Combine signs for things and actions to communicate ideas or sentences. The arrangement of words does not need to be the same as in the spoken language— and you can leave out "extra" words like “the” and “a.” Also, words like “to” or “from” can often be left out or can be indicated by the direction of a motion.

Set the table.
PUT or SET	TABLE

Will you give me a banana, please?
BANANA (peeling motion)	GIVE	YOU to ME	PLEASE

• Decide whether or not to use letters of the alphabet to make some signs. In some sign languages the first letter of a spoken (written) word is used as the sign for that word. At first this will mean nothing to a child who cannot read, and will be harder. But it can help prepare the child for learning to read and to finger spell. Again, be systematic:

The sign for "W" is	WALL	WATER	WATERMELON
			1.	2.
			(Tap with finger.)

Be sure that letter-based signs agree with the word in your language. In Spanish, “watermelon” is “sandía,” so the English sign makes no sense. The Spanish sign is:	SANDÍA
		(Tap with fist.)

• You can make up signs for people’s names by using the first letter of their name in their sign name, by showing something that stands for that person, or both.

If María looks like this,	you might sign her name like this:
	1.	2.
	Sign “M” for María,	and then the sign for “glasses”.
TAKE	the BOOK	to MARÍA
(Move hands in direction it should be taken.)

HOW TO ASK QUESTIONS

WHAT?		What time is it?
		TIME?	WHAT
What did you do last night?
PAST	NIGHT	DO	WHAT (shrug)	YOU

WHERE?	WHEN?	WHY?
WHO?	WHICH?	HOW MANY, HOW MUCH?

What is your name?
YOUR	NAME	WHAT?
Note: "Is", "are", "am", "was", and "were" are often not used, as in “What is your name?”

IS	QUESTION MARK
			Use before or after a statement to turn it into a question. (motion of milking cow)

EXAMPLES OF SIGNS

The signs shown here are mostly used in the United States (American Sign Language). A few are from Nepal, Jamaica, and Mexico, because these seem easier to understand. We have chosen signs for things and actions that should be useful for early learning and group games with children. We include them mainly to give you ideas. Change and adapt them to better fit your area.

Arrows		in the drawings show the direction of hand movement to make the sign.
Wavy lines		used with a sign mean a shake of the hand or fingers.
Dotted lines		show how the sign looks when it begins.
The darker sign is how it looks when it ends.

Note: A few signs shown here are based on letters of the alphabet (for example, ‘it’ uses the letter T, and ‘we’ the letter ‘W’). Change these signs if you speak a different language, or if you want to avoid signs based on letters.

I, ME	YOU	THEY, THEM	MALE (MAN)	FEMALE (WOMAN)	Note: The male and female signs are used as the base to make signs for boy, girl, father, mother, etc.
		or
FATHER	MOTHER	BROTHER	SISTER	BOY	GIRL
GRAND FATHER	GRAND MOTHER	FRIEND	BABY	MY	YOUR
HE, HIM	SHE, HER	IS, HER, THEIR, YOUR	IT	WE	OUR
		Direct sign toward person.	Or point to object.
GOOD or THANK YOU	BAD	HAPPY	SAD	CLEAN/ NICE	DIRTY/ PIG
HOT	COLD	SMALL	LARGE	DOWN	UP
UGLY	PRETTY	FAT	THIN	WEAK	STRONG
INSIDE	OUTSIDE	UNDER	TIRED	SICK	ANGRY
HUNGRY	EAT	FOOD	THIRSTY	DRINK	WATER
MILK	SOUP	BREAD	BOWL	SPOON	TOILET
(motion of milking cow)
HOUSE	VILLAGE, COMMUNITY,	SCHOOL	MONEY
	CITY, TOWN		in America	in Nepal	in Mexico
BLIND	DEAF	HEARING AID	FORGET	REMEMBER	UNDERSTAND
RED	GREEN	BLUE	YELLOW	BLACK	fWHITE
COME	GO	BEGIN	STOP	GIVE	HAVE (possess)
WANT	DON'T WANT	SEE	LOOK	HEAR	LISTEN
TALK	MAKE	WORK	USE	PLAY	GAME
TAKE (carry)	BRING	PUT	HELP (assist)	TEACH	LEARN
STAND	LIE DOWN	WALK	RUN	SLIP	FALL
SIT	SQUAT	LIKE	LOVE	DRAW	WRITE
CHICKEN	COW	HORSE	OAT	BULL	DOG
DAY	MORNING	AFTERNOON	NIGHT	YES	NO
				Nod hand like head.
HAT	SHIRT	PANTS	SKIRT	SOCKS	SHOE/ SANDAL

FUTURE	PAST	It is going to rain.		It rained.
		FUTURE sign	RAIN	PAST sign	RAIN

NOW	It is raining.		Throw the ball to her.
	RAIN	NOW	BALL	THROW	(to her)
			As you sign 'THROW', move your hand in 'her' direction. (Separate signs are not needed.)

NUMBERS (one of many systems)

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11		12		13		14		15
16		17		18		19		20
21		22		50		100
Plurals (more than one)					Plurals can be made by repeating the sign several times, or by signing the number and then the thing:
CHILD		CHILDREN
(Motion like patting.)		(Repeat sign next to first.)			BANANA 3

ONE-HANDED SIGN ALPHABET (American)

A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H	I
J	K	L	M	N	O	P	Q	R
S	T	T	U	V	W	X	Y	Z
	American	Danish

This page was updated:18 Sep 2024