A deaf-community or urban sign language is a

sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with non-manual markers. Sign l ...

that emerges when

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

people who do not have a common language come together and form a community. This may be a formal situation, such as the establishment of a school for deaf students, or informal, such as migration to cities for employment and the subsequent gathering of deaf people for social purposes. An example of the first is

Nicaraguan Sign Language Nicaraguan Sign Language (ISN; es, Idioma de Señas de Nicaragua) is a form of sign language which developed spontaneously among deaf children in a number of schools in Nicaragua in the 1980s. It is of particular interest to linguists as it off ...

, which emerged when deaf children in

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to ...

were brought together for the first time, and received only oral education; of the latter, Bamako Sign Language, which emerged among the tea circles of the uneducated deaf in the capital of

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...

. Nicaraguan SL is now a language of instruction and is recognized as the national sign language; Bamako SL is not, and is threatened by the use of

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States of America and most of Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that is express ...

in schools for the deaf. Deaf-community sign languages contrast with

village sign language A village sign language, or village sign, also known as a shared sign language, is a local indigenous sign language used by both deaf and hearing in an area with a high incidence of congenital deafness. Meir ''et al.'' define a village sign langua ...

in that they tend to be used only by the deaf, at least at first, and most communication is between deaf people. Village sign languages, on the other hand, develop in relatively isolated areas with high incidences of

congenital A birth defect, also known as a congenital disorder, is an abnormal condition that is present at birth regardless of its cause. Birth defects may result in disabilities that may be physical, intellectual, or developmental. The disabilities c ...

deafness, where most hearing people have deaf family, so that most signers are hearing. These differences have

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

consequences. Urban deaf communities lack the common knowledge and

social context The social environment, social context, sociocultural context or milieu refers to the immediate physical and social setting in which people live or in which something happens or develops. It includes the culture that the individual was educate ...

that enables village signers to communicate without being verbally explicit. Deaf-community signers need to communicate with strangers, and therefore must be more explicit; it is thought this may have the effect of developing or at least speeding up the development of grammatical and other linguistic structures in the emerging language. For example, only deaf-community sign languages are known to make abstract and grammatical use of

sign space The grammar of American Sign Language (ASL) is the best studied of any sign language, though research is still in its infancy, dating back only to William Stokoe in the 1960s. Morphology ASL morphology is to a large extent iconic. This show ...

. Both types of deaf sign language differ from speech-taboo languages such as the various

Aboriginal Australian sign languages Many Australian Aboriginal cultures have or traditionally had a manually coded language, a signed counterpart of their oral language. This appears to be connected with various speech taboos between certain kin or at particular times, such as ...

, which are developed by the hearing community and only used secondarily by the deaf, and are not independent languages. Deaf-community languages may develop directly from

home sign Home sign (or kitchen sign) is a gestural communication system, often invented spontaneously by a deaf child who lacks accessible linguistic input. Home sign systems often arise in families where a deaf child is raised by hearing parents and is iso ...

, or perhaps from

idioglossic An idioglossia (from the Ancient Greek , 'own, personal, distinct' and , 'tongue') is an idiosyncratic language invented and spoken by only one person or only two people. Most often, ''idioglossia'' refers to the "private languages" of young ...

sign (in families with more than one deaf child), as was the case with Nicaraguan SL, or they may develop from village sign languages, as appears to have been at least partially the case with American SL, which arose in a school for the deaf where

French Sign Language French Sign Language (french: langue des signes française, LSF) is the sign language of the deaf in France and French-speaking parts of Switzerland. According to '' Ethnologue'', it has 100,000 native signers. French Sign Language is rela ...

was the language of instruction, but seems to have derived largely from two or three village sign languages of the students.

Languages

Once a sign language is established, especially if it is a language of education, it may spread and spawn additional languages, such as in the

French Sign Language family The French Sign Language (LSF, from ''langue des signes française'') or Francosign family is a language family of sign languages which includes French Sign Language and American Sign Language. The LSF family descends from Old French Sign Langua ...

. The following are languages thought to have been established in new deaf communities, without the direct transmission of an existing sign language. There are presumably others; with many sign languages, we have no records of how they formed.See also *

British Sign Language British Sign Language (BSL) is a sign language used in the United Kingdom (UK), and is the first or preferred language among the Deaf community in the UK. Based on the percentage of people who reported 'using British Sign Language at home' o ...

(urban→school) *

German Sign Language German Sign Language or Deutsche Gebärdensprache (DGS), is the sign language of the deaf community in Germany, Luxembourg and in the German-speaking community of Belgium. It is unclear how many use German Sign Language as their main language; ...

(urban) *

Old French Sign Language Old French Sign Language (french: Vieille langue des signes française, often abbreviated as VLSF) was the language of the deaf community in 18th-century Paris at the time of the establishment of the first deaf schools. The earliest records o ...

(urban) *

Lyons Sign Language Spurious languages are languages that have been reported as existing in reputable works, while other research has reported that the language in question did not exist. Some spurious languages have been proven to not exist. Others have very li ...

(urban) *

Japanese Sign Language , also known by the acronym JSL, is the dominant sign language in Japan and is a complete natural language, distinct from but influenced by the spoken Japanese language. Population There are 304,000 Deaf and Hard of Hearing people who are abov ...

(school?) *

Chinese Sign Language Chinese Sign Language ( abbreviated CSL or ZGS; ) is the official sign language of the People's Republic of China. It is unrelated to Taiwanese Sign Language and is known in the Republic of China as ''Wénfǎ Shǒuyǔ'' (). History The firs ...

(school) *

Tibetan Sign Language Tibetan Sign Language is the recently established deaf sign language of Tibet. Tibetan Sign is the first recognized sign language for a minority in China. The Tibetan Sign Language Project, staffed by members of the local deaf club, was set up ...

(standardization of several community languages) *

Thai Sign Language Thai Sign Language (TSL), or Modern Standard Thai Sign Language (MSTSL), is the national sign language of Thailand's deaf community and is used in most parts of the country by the 20 percent of the estimated 56,000 pre-linguistically deaf people ...

(urban sign with significant input from ASL) *

Qahveh Khaneh Sign Language Qahveh Khaneh Sign Language, literally Coffee House Sign Language, is a deaf sign language of a few elderly members of the deaf community in Tehran. It has been in use since 1900 or earlier. It is unknown if it is related to Iranian Sign Language ...

(urban) *

Indo-Pakistani Sign Language Indo-Pakistani Sign Language (IPSL) is the predominant sign language in the subcontinent of South Asia, used by at least 15 million deaf signers. As with many sign languages, it is difficult to estimate numbers with any certainty, as the Cen ...

Sri Lankan sign languages Sri Lankan Sign Language is a visual language used by deaf people in Sri Lanka and has regional variations stemming from the 25 Deaf schools in Sri Lanka. Classification Wittmann (1991) Wittmann, Henri (1991). "Classification linguistique des ...

(school sign, fourteen languages) *

Israeli Sign Language Israeli Sign Language, also known as Shassi or ISL, is the most commonly used sign language by the Deaf community of Israel. Some other sign languages are also used in Israel, among them Al-Sayyid Bedouin Sign Language. History The history of ...

* Bamako Sign Language (urban) * Mbour Sign Language (urban) *

Hausa Sign Language Hausa Sign Language (HSL) or ''Maganar Hannu'' is the indigenous sign language of the Deaf community Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that preclud ...

(urban) * Tanzanian sign languages (school sign, seven languages) *

(school sign; village sign with significant input from FSL) *

(school sign) * Venezuelan Sign Language * Far North Queensland Indigenous Sign Language (Cairns and points north) Other locally developed sign languages which may have formed this way are: :(in Africa) Burkina Sign Language, the various

Ethiopian sign languages A number of Ethiopian sign languages have been used in various Ethiopian schools for the deaf since 1971, and at the primary level since 1956. Ethiopian Sign Language, presumably a national standard, is used in primary, secondary, and—at Addis ...

Guinea-Bissau Sign Language Guinea-Bissau Sign Language is an incipient sign language evolving from the single school for the deaf in Guinea-Bissau, which was founded in Bissau in 2003. In 2005 a linguist and Portuguese Sign Language Portuguese Sign language () is a sig ...

Kenyan Sign Language Kenyan Sign Language ( English: KSL, Swahili: LAK) is a sign language used by the deaf community in Kenya and Somalia. It is used by over half of Kenya's estimated 600,000 deaf population. There are some dialect differences between Kisumu (weste ...

Libyan Sign Language Libyan Sign Language is the deaf sign language of Libya. It appears to belong to the Arab sign language family The Arab sign-language family is a family of sign languages spread across the Arab Middle East. Its extent is not yet known, because ...

Maroua Sign Language Maroua Sign Language is a sign language used by approximately 150 people in and around the town of Maroua, capital of the Far North Region of Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (fr ...

, the various

Sudanese sign languages Sudan and South Sudan have multiple regional sign languages, which are not mutually intelligible. A survey of just three states found 150 sign languages, though this number included instances of home sign. Government figures estimate there ar ...

Ugandan Sign Language Ugandan Sign Language (USL) is the deaf sign language of Uganda. Uganda was the second country in the world to recognize sign language in its constitution, in 1995. A ''Ugandan Sign Language Dictionary'' has been published. However, knowledge o ...

Zambian Sign Language Zambian Sign Language is a sign language used by the Deaf community in Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referr ...

Zimbabwean Sign Language Several Zimbabwean sign languages developed independently among deaf students in different Zimbabwean schools for the deaf starting in the 1940s. It is not clear how many languages they are, as little research has been done; Masvingo School Sign ...

:(in America)

Brazilian Sign Language Brazilian Sign Language ( pt, Língua Brasileira de Sinais ) is the sign language used by deaf communities of urban Brazil. It is also known in short as Libras () and variously abbreviated as LSB, LGB or LSCB (; "Brazilian Cities Sign Language" ...

Colombian Sign Language Colombian Sign Language ( es, Lengua de Señas Colombiana, LSC, ) is the deaf sign language of Colombia. Classification Clark notes that Peruvian, Bolivian, Ecuadorian and Colombian sign languages "have significant lexical similarities to each ...

Ecuadorian Sign Language Ecuadorian Sign Language is the deaf sign language of Ecuador. Classification Clarkhttp://ling.hawaii.edu/wp-content/uploads/Clark_Brenda-Dissertation-Draft.pdf notes that Peruvian, Bolivian, Ecuadorian and Colombian sign languages "have signi ...

, Jamaican Country Sign Language,

Peruvian Sign Language Peruvian Sign Language (LSP by its acronym in Spanish: "lengua de señas peruana") (Glottocode: peru1235, ISO 639-3: prl) is a Peruvian language created and used by the Deaf community in Peru. It has been officially recognized by Peruvian law sinc ...

Chiriqui Sign Language Chiriqui Sign Language (Spanish: ''Lengua de Señas de Chiriquí'', LSCH) is the principal deaf sign language of the province of Chiriquí in Panama. It's not clear if it's related to Panamanian Sign Language, which is not mutually intelligibl ...

:(in Asia)

Old Bangkok Sign Language Bangkok Sign Language (also known as Old or Original Bangkok Sign Language) is a deaf-community sign language of Thailand that arose among deaf people who migrated to Bangkok for work or family. The language is moribund, with all speakers born b ...

, Old Chiangmai Sign Language,

Penang Sign Language Penang Sign Language was developed in Malaysia by deaf children, outside the classroom, when oralism was predominant. It is now mainly used by older people, although many younger people can understand it. History Penang Sign Language began when ...

Hanoi Sign Language Hanoi Sign Language is the deaf-community sign language of the city of Hanoi in Vietnam. It is about 50% cognate with the other sign languages of Vietnam, and its vocabulary has been extensively influenced by the French Sign Language French ...

Saigon Sign Language Ho Chi Minh City Sign Language, also known as Sai Gon Sign Language, is the language of many deaf communities in a southern of Vietnam. This sign language was named Ho Chi Minh City Sign language by Prof. Dr. Woodward who is the first American l ...

Haiphong Sign Language Haiphong Sign Language is the deaf-community sign language of the city of Haiphong in Vietnam. It is about 50% cognate with the other sign languages of Vietnam, and has been less influenced than them by the French Sign Language once taught in Viet ...

Yogyakarta Sign Language Indonesian Sign Language, or Bahasa Isyarat Indonesia (BISINDO), is any of several related deaf sign languages of Indonesia, at least on the island of Java. It is based on American Sign Language, with local admixture in different cities. Alth ...

Nepalese Sign Language Nepalese Sign Language or Nepali Sign Language is the main sign language of Nepal. It is a partially standardized language based informally on the variety used in Kathmandu, with some input from varieties from Pokhara and elsewhere. As an indigen ...

Kurdish Sign Language Kurdish Sign Language (ZHK, from Kurdish ''Zmani Hêmay Kurdi'') is the deaf sign language of the Kurds of Kurdistan Region, Iraq. There are three dialects, associated with the three Kurdish schools for the deaf in Sulaymaniyah, Erbil and Duhok ...

:(in Europe)

Catalan Sign Language Catalan Sign Language ( ca, Llengua de signes catalana, LSC; ) is a sign language used by around 18,000 people in different areas of Spain including Barcelona and Catalonia. As of 2012, the Catalan Federation for the Deaf estimates 25,000 LSC ...

Spanish Sign Language Spanish Sign Language ( es, Lengua de Signos Española, LSE) is a sign language used mainly by deaf people in Spain and the people who live with them. Although there are not many reliable statistics, it is estimated that there are over 100,000 s ...

Swiss German Sign Language Swiss-German Sign Language (German: ''Deutschschweizer Gebärdensprache'', abbreviated DSGS) is the primary deaf sign language of the German-speaking part of Switzerland and of Liechtenstein. The language was established around 1828. In 2011 it ...

Swedish Sign Language Swedish Sign Language (SSL; ) is the sign language used in Sweden. It is recognized by the Swedish government as the country's official sign language, and hearing parents of deaf individuals are entitled to access state-sponsored classes that ...

References

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