Registered sgn-* tags

Michael Everson everson at evertype.com
Tue Jul 13 00:38:14 CEST 2004


At 13:58 -0700 2004-07-12, Peter Constable wrote:

>First some background info for those unfamiliar with signed languages
>spoken by the deaf. There is a distinction between "signed spoken
>languages", meaning a signed expression of an oral language such as
>English, and deaf sign languages, which are distinct languages, largely
>or wholly unrelated to the oral languages spoken by the hearing in the
>matrix community. Signed English is an example of the former, American
>Sign Language is an example of the latter.

It's not entirely that simple, though. "Signed English" employs 
"words", i.e. "signs" which belong to e.g. American or British or 
Irish Sign Language, though with English grammar and syntax as 
opposed to the native Sign Languages (which have their own unique 
grammars. Its not just "fingerspelt" English. Social use of these 
varieties is complex. Non-Deaf speakers may use them with Hearing 
learners; television media may tend to prefer it for "subtitling" the 
news or other spoken material.

This bears further thinking.
-- 
Michael Everson * * Everson Typography *  * http://www.evertype.com


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