1. American Sign Language Phonetics and Phonology LING 200 Spring 2003 Reading: Files 1.3, 13.1, 13.2

2. General characteristics of signed languages Language  speech –spoken languages use auditory modality –sign languages use visual/gestural modality What is a sign? –meaning  pronunciation (  ‘word’) 

3. General characteristics of signed languages Sign languages are: – full fledged languages, not substitutes for language –are fully expressive –are the primary means of communication among deaf people –are found wherever deaf people are found –can be grouped into historical families

4. Signed language families Signed languages are not signed versions of spoken languages The sign language of an area does not belong to the same family of languages as the spoken language of that area Families of spoken languages  families of sign languages

5. Other families of sign languages British SL New Zealand SL Australian SL

6. Other families of sign languages Chinese SL Korean SL Japanese SL (spoken) Chinese (Sino-Tibetan family) spoken Korean (isolate?) spoken Japanese (isolate?)

7. Other families of sign languages Swedish SL Norwegian SL SVK SVK = Finnish Sign Language spoken Swedish, Norwegian (N. Germanic family) spoken Finnish (Finno-Ugric family)

8. Other families of sign languages Israeli SL German SL Hebrew (Semitic) German (W. Germanic)

9. American Sign Language The preferred language of the Deaf community of the US and Canada –deaf vs. Deaf Has dialects –rural south ASL is most divergent Usually learned from –peers at residential schools –adult members of the Deaf community

10. American Sign Language and related languages Old Kentish SL MVSL Old ASL Old French Sign Language ASL French SL ROISL Span SL NGT QSL ASL = American Sign Language MVSL = Martha’s Vineyard Sign Language NGT = Dutch Sign Language ROISL = Republic of Ireland Sign Language QSL = Quebec Sign Language Old French SL: attested 300 years ago

11. General characteristics of signed languages Sign languages –are not universal in form –were not invented –are not what some chimpanzees have learned –differ primarily from spoken languages in modality

12. Iconicity in spoken language Sound  meaning –arbitrary, non-iconic –[h E r] ‘hair’ vs. ‘hare’ Onomatopoeia (sound imitating environment) –to neigh, meow, mew, bark, woof, moo, oink, etc. –But cross-linguistic differences: [b A rk] ‘bark’ Sekani [y A ht h ic  ], Witsuwit’en [y  ts h E ], Deg Xinag [yet T h  t] ‘it’s barking’

13. Iconicity in signed languages HAIRCANADA Is sign language pantomime?

14. The iconicity issue EYEBLACK

15. Historically iconic signs MILK COFFEE

16. Differences between sign languages TREE in ASL vs. Chinese SL BREAD in ASL vs. French SL

17. Phonetic dimensions of ASL handshape orientation location movement number of hands: one or two hands non-manual expression

18. Transcription issues Some different transcription systems for sign languages –Sign Writing: www.signwriting.org –Hamnosis

19. Handshape TENFLY

20. Minimal pairs for handshape PEOPLEBICYCLE

21. Signs which change handshape UNDERSTAND

22. Orientation of palm of hand (near-)minimal pairs YOUR CHILD

23. Near-minimal pairs for orientation BOOKDOOR

24. Signs with change in orientation DEATHDIVORCED

25. Location (neutral space) CAR (weak hand) STAND

26. Minimal pairs for location APPLEONION

27. Signs with change in location DEAF FUN