Index A Abbreviations, 31, 121, 135 ABCOS15, 61–62, 135 Acronyms, 135 Active voice, 91, 99, 135 Addresses, 44, 45 Adjectives defined, 135 mouth movements, 67 syntax, 115 temporal aspect, 82 translation study sheet, 132 Adverbs, 67, 71–72, 135 Aff. See Affirmative sentences Affirmative sentences, 20, 97, 129 Affixes, 47–48, 71, 82, 135–136 Age, 40, 55 Agent affix, 47–48 Ambidextrous, 62 American Manual Alphabet, 28, 31–32, 136 Amount classifiers, 77, 136 AND, 116 Arbitrary signs, 48, 136 Arrows, 20 Articles, 117, 133, 136 Aspect defined, 136 temporal, 80–82, 125, 146 verbal, 147 See also Tense Assimilation, 47, 136 Auxiliary verbs, 115, 132, 136 B Bent hand, 61 Bent V, 60 Body movements defined, 137 gesture, 139 plural classifiers, 77 role shifting, 68–69 See also Non-manual markers Body shift, 69, 137 “Bro” mouth movement, 68t BUT, 116 C Capital letters, glossing, 18 Cardinal numbers, 33–37, 137 Cents, 38–39 “Cha” mouth movement, 20, 67, 68t, 72 “Cheeks puffed” mouth movement, 68t, 81, 83 CL. See Classifiers Classifiers amount, 77, 136 body, 137 defined, 136 gesture, 77, 139 glossing, 19 instrument, 76, 140 location, 140 morphology, 73–80 pluralization, 114, 143 prepositions, 115 shape, 77, 145 size, 76, 145 story videos, 78 surface, 76, 146 translation study sheet, 124–125 verbs, 77, 80, 137 whole, 76, 148 Claw hand, 61 Closed hand, 60 Clothing, 65 Cocked index, 61 COMMENT defined, 137 topicalization, 99 translation study sheet, 128 word order, 89, 91, 93 Comparisons, 30 151
Don’t Just “Sign”... Communicate! Compound signs, 46–48, 137 Cond. See Conditional sentences Conditional sentences defined, 137 non-manual markers, 19, 20 syntax, 98–99 translation study sheet, 130 Conjugate, 84, 137. See also Tense Conjunctions, 116–117, 132–133, 138 Contact signs, 24, 142 Continual verbs, 80, 81 Cornett, R. Orin, 24, 138 Counting, 33–37 “Cs” mouth movement, 68t, 81, 83 Cued speech, 24, 138 Curved hand, 61 D Dash symbol, glossing, 18 Deaf community initialized signs, 50, 51 name signs, 48 sign variations, 55–56 Declarative sentences, 97, 129–130 Degree, indicating, 71 Descriptive name signs, 48, 138 dh. See Dominant hand Directionality, 19, 30 Directional verbs defined, 138 indexing, 102, 110–113 morphology, 78–79 plural, 142–143 translation study sheet, 126–127 word order, 92 Dollars, 38–39 Dominant hand, 19, 62–63, 138 DON’T-MIND, 53 Duration, indicating, 85, 126 E Emphasis, 30 English idioms, 55 signs for “no,” 48 signs without translation, 51–55, 122 sign systems, 24 versus ASL, 15, 23 word order, 89, 90 Eye gaze, 69 F Facial expressions defined, 138 glossing, 19 inflection, 71, 72 phonology, 59, 66–68 topicalization, 99 translation study sheet, 123 See also Non-manual markers Family members, 40, 102 Female signs, 45 Fingerspelling (FS) defined, 138 glossing, 18 lexicalized, 19, 121, 140 measurements, 43 ordinal numbers, 37 possession, 110 Rochester method, 24–25 use of, 28–33 FINISH, 53, 54 FINISH-TOUCH, 51–52 Flat hand, 61 Forward palm, 63 Fractions, 42 FS. See Fingerspelling “Fsh” mouth movements, 67, 68t Future tense, 80, 82, 83, 84–85 G Gallaudet, Thomas Hopkins, 53 Gallaudet University, 24 Gaze, 69 Gender signs, 45–46 Gesture. See Body movements; Non-manual markers Gesture classifiers, 77, 139 GIVE, 112–113 Glossing, 18–20, 139 H Handshapes, 28, 59, 60–62, 108 Height, 43 Horizontal palm, 64 Horns, 61 Hybrid name signs, 48 Hyphen symbol, 44 152
Index I Iconic signs, 46, 139 Idioms, 55, 139 If/then. See Conditional sentences Indexing articles, 117 defined, 139 prepositions, 115 pronouns, 102–113, 131 Inflecting verbs. See Directional verbs Inflection duration, 85 glossing, 19 morphology, 71–72 quotes, 19 temporal aspect, 80–82 See also Adverbs Initialized signs, 50–51, 140 Instrument classifiers, 76, 140 Intensity, indicating, 71 Inverted V, 60 Inward palm, 64 Italics, glossing, 19 L Letters, with numbers, 45 Lexicalized fingerspelling, 19, 30, 121, 140 Lipreading, 24 “Lips pursed” mouth movement, 68t Loan signs, 48, 140 Location classifiers, 77, 140 defined, 140 phonology, 59, 60, 64–65 verbs, 79, 80p Lowercase words, glossing, 18 M Male signs, 45 Manual alphabet, 28, 31–32, 136 Measurements, 43–44 MEET, 111–112 Misconceptions, 23 “Mm” mouth movement, 68t, 81 Modern Language Association, 23 Money, 38–39 Months, 32–33 Morphemes, 71, 140 Morphology, 71–87, 140 Mouth movements glossing, 20 indicating time, 83 inflection, 72 phonology, 67 translation study sheet, 123–124 Movement defined, 141 indexing, 110 indicated by arrows, 20 noun-verb pairs, 72–73 phonology, 59, 60, 62–63 See also Body movements; Mouth movements N NAME-SHINE, 53 Name signs arbitrary, 136 defined, 141 descriptive, 48, 138 fingerspelling, 28 translation study sheet, 121 Neg. See Negative sentences Negative sentences glossing, 20 syntax, 97–98, 101 translation study sheet, 129 vocabulary, 48–50 Neutral declarative sentences, 98 nh. See Non-dominant hand NMM. See Non-manual markers NO, 48–50, 122 Non-dominant hand ABCOS15, 61 AND, 116 conjunctions, 116 glossing, 19 indexing, 102–103 time signs, 83 NONE, 49–50 Non-manual markers affixes, 71 articles, 117 conditional sentences, 98 declarative sentences, 97, 98 defined, 141 glossing, 19 indicating time, 83 negation, 101 phonology, 60, 65–69 rhetorical questions, 96 syntax, 89 topicalization, 91, 99, 100 153
Don’t Just “Sign”... Communicate! wh-word questions, 94 yes/no questions, 95 No questions. See Yes/no questions NOT, 49 Nouns, 72–73, 114, 141 Noun-verb pairs, 72–73, 141 Numbers cardinal, 137 different types, 33–45, 137, 142 pluralization, 114 translation study sheet, 121 verbal, 147 Number symbol, glossing, 19 Numeral incorporation, 84, 114, 124, 141 O Object, of a sentence defined, 141 directional verbs, 110 sentences without, 127 topicalization, 99 word order, 89–93 Object-subject-verb (OSV), 90, 91, 92, 99, 141 One-handed signs, 62, 63p, 142 1-hand/index, 61 Online dictionaries, 28 Open hand, 61 OR, 116 Ordinal numbers, 37–38, 142 OSV, 90, 91, 92, 99, 141 P “Pah” mouth movements, 67, 68t Palm orientation defined, 142 phonology, 59, 60, 63–64 reversal of, 101, 144 Palm to palm, 64 Palm toward palm, 64 Passive voice, 91, 99, 142 Past tense, 80, 82, 83, 84–85 Person affix, 47–48 Personal pronouns, 102, 103–108, 142 Phonemes, 59, 142 Phone numbers, 44 Phonology, 59–69, 142 Pidgin Signed English (PSE), 24, 142 Plain verbs defined, 142 morphology, 78, 79p syntax, 90 translation study sheet, 127 Pluralization classifiers, 77, 143 defined, 143 directional verbs, 112–113, 126–127, 142–143 non-manual markers, 71 nouns, 114 translation study sheet, 131–132 Plus symbol, glossing, 19 Popularity, of ASL, 23 Possessive pronouns, 102, 108–110, 143 Pragmatics, 143 Predicate, of a sentence, 89, 115, 143 Prefixes, 24, 54, 143 Prepositions, 115, 132, 143 Present tense, 80, 82, 83, 84–85 Pronouns ASL, 46 classifiers, 73 defined, 143 indexing and, 102–113, 131 personal, 142 pluralization, 114 word order, 92 PSE, 24, 142 Punctuation, 144 Q Quantifiers, 114, 144 Question mark wiggle, 95, 144 Questions facial expressions, 66 translation study sheet, 128–130 wh-word, 93–94 yes/no, 19, 20, 95, 128, 148 R Reciprocal verbs, 79, 144 Referencing. See Indexing Referent, 144. See also Indexing Regional variations, 55 Regularity, indicating, 80, 81, 86–87, 126 Repetition defined, 144 glossing, 19 pluralization, 114 verbs, 80–81 Reposition, 144 Reputation, 53 Resources, 149 Reversal of orientation, 101, 144 154
Index Rhetorical questions (rhq) defined, 144 glossing, 19, 20, syntax, 96 translation study sheet, 129 Rhq. See Rhetorical question Rochester method, 24–25, 145 Role shifting, 68–69, 78, 124, 145 Roman numerals, 35, 36 S SE, 23, 24, 145 Sentences, syntax, 89–117. See also Individual Shape classifiers, 77, 145 Shoulder twist, 116 Sightline, 65, 145 Signed English (SE), 23, 24, 145 Signing space, 64–65, 145 Sign systems, 23–25, 50, 145 60’s-90’s wrist tilt, 41 Size classifiers, 76, 145 Spatial language, 73 Spatial verbs, 79, 145–146 Speed classifiers, 73 inflection, 71, 72 “Sta-sta-sta” mouth movement, 68t, 81 “State of being” verbs, 80 States, 32 Stressed signs. See Inflection Subject, of a sentence defined, 146 directional verbs, 110 word order, 89–93 Subject-verb-object (SVO) defined, 146 topicalization, 99 word order, 90, 91, 92 Suffixes, 114, 146 Surface classifiers, 76, 146 SVO. See Subject-verb-object (SVO) Syllables, 29, 146 Syntax, 89–117, 146 T TC, 24, 147 Technology, 55 Temporal aspects, 80–82, 125–126, 146 TEND-TO, 52 Tense defined, 146 morphology, 71, 84–85 “state of being verbs,” 80 time signs, 82–83 “Thh” mouth movement, 68t “Th” mouth movement, 68t Time morphology, 82–87 translation study sheet, 126 vocabulary, 41–42 word order, 93 TIME-TOPIC-COMMENT, 93, 128, 147 Titles, 28 TOPIC, 89, 91, 93, 147 Topicalization (t) defined, 147 glossing, 19 syntax, 91, 92, 99–100 translation study sheet, 130–131 TOPIC-COMMENT, 89 Total Communication (TC), 24, 147 “Train go sorry,” 55 2h. See Two-handed signs Two-handed signs, 19, 61, 62–63, 147 U U.S. Supreme Court, 23 V Variations, common, 55–56 Verbal aspect, 147 Verbs auxiliary, 115, 132, 136 classifiers, 77, 80, 137 continual, 80, 81 defined, 147 directional, 78–79, 92, 102, 110–113, 126–127, 138, 142–143 indexing, 110–113 noun pairs, 72–73 numbers, 147 plain, 78, 79p, 90, 127, 142 reciprocal, 79, 144 spatial, 79, 145–146 temporal aspect, 80–82 tense, 80, 84–85 translation study sheet, 125 types, 78–80 word order, 89–93 Visible English, 24–25, 145 V handshape, 60 Vocabulary, 27–56 155
Don’t Just “Sign”... Communicate! W WHICH, 116–117 Whole classifiers, 76, 148 Whq. See Wh-word questions (whq) Wh-word questions (whq) defined, 148 glossing, 19, 20 sentence types, 93–94 topicalization, 100, 128, 130 Word order, 89–93, 110, 148 Wrist tilt, 41 Y Years, 44 Yes/no questions defined, 148 glossing, 19, 20 syntax, 95 translation study sheet, 128 Y/n. See Yes/no questions 156
About the Author Beginning when she was only thirteen years old, Michelle Jay has understood her passion and love for ASL. As a hearing person in the Deaf community, Michelle was determined to master everything she could about ASL… not just “how to sign,” but the very best ways to learn to sign as well! As the founder of StartASL.com, the leading online resource for ASL and Deaf Culture, Michelle has tremendous insight into this unique community. Michelle earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Deaf Studies, with an emphasis in teaching, from one of the nation’s premier programs at California State University, Northridge. When not writing books or tending her website, Michelle contributes thought-provoking articles to academic publishers such as Greenhaven Press. Her unique articles have done much to support Deaf Culture, and have been printed in resource publications such as American Chronicle and Perspectives on Diseases & Disorders: Deafness & Hearing Impairments. 157
Don’t Just “Sign”... Communicate! A Student’s Guide to ASL and the Deaf Community The Heart Of Any Language Is Found Within Its Culture… As anyone who has learned a foreign language will tell you, all language is an experience. And that experience is found through a language’s culture – its people. The journey toward complete comprehension and usage of American Sign Language includes the recognition, not only of the sovereignty of the language, but of the understanding that ASL lives within its own community and culture. The full learning and understanding of a language involves much more than vocabulary or sentence structure. All language is unique in vocabulary, grammar, syntax, emotion, and more… including culture. ASL is a language unique to the community that uses it. Don’t Just “Sign”…Communicate! focuses on giving you a better understanding of the ASL community and culture, as well as a better and more comprehensive understanding of learning the language. This guide successfully takes you inside the Deaf community and gets you involved in its fascinating culture. Take advantage of this informative and handy resource that will make your journey into ASL a fulfilling adventure. Start ASL has created this guide so that you can easily explore the ASL language and Deaf culture. This guide provides you with tools, advice, and helpful resources not available anywhere else! http://books.startasl.com