Portal:Language/Language topic/January 2007

A sign language (also signed language) is a language which uses manual communication instead of sound to convey meaning - simultaneously combining handshapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to express fluidly a speaker's thoughts. Sign languages commonly develop in deaf communities, which can include interpreters and friends and families of deaf people as well as people who are deaf or hard of hearing themselves. They are also used by people with speech impairments such as Aphasia. When people using different sign languages meet, communication is significantly easier than when people of different oral languages meet. However, contrary to popular belief, sign language is not universal. Wherever communities of deaf people exist, sign languages develop, but as with oral languages, these vary from region to region. Find out more...