South African sign language

South African Sign Language

Native to| South Africa

Native speakers

| 235,000 (2011 census)[1]

Language family

BANZSL

* South African Sign Language

Official status

Official language in

|  South Africa
Language codes
ISO 639-3| `sfs`
Glottolog| `sout1404`

South African Sign Language (SASL, Afrikaans: Suid-Afrikaanse Gebaretaal) is the primary sign language used by deaf people in South Africa. The South African government added a National Language Unit for South African Sign Language in 2001.[2] SASL is not the only manual language used in South Africa,[3][4] but it is the language that is being promoted as the language to be used by the Deaf in South Africa,[5] although Deaf peoples in South Africa historically do not form a single group.

In 1995, the previous South African National Council for the Deaf (SANCD) was transformed into the Deaf Federation of South Africa (DeafSA),[6] which resulted in a radical policy change in matters for Deaf people in South Africa, such as the development and adoption of a single sign language and the promotion of sign language over oralism. Schools for the deaf have remained largely untransformed, however, and different schools for Deaf children in South African still use different sign language systems, and at a number of schools for the Deaf the use of any sign language is either discouraged or simply not taught.[7] There are as many as twelve different systems of signed oral language in South Africa.[8]

In addition to South African sign languages, American Sign Language (ASL) is also used by some Deaf people in South Africa. Most local sign languages in South Africa show the influence of American Sign Language.

In South Africa, newscasts on television employ the sign language known as SASL. The South African parliament also uses sign language, however different sign language interpreters are known to use various signals for the same topics.[9] There are around 40 schools for the Deaf in South Africa, most using a variety of SASL.

Sign language is explicitly mentioned in the South African constitution, and the South African Schools Act permits the study of the language in lieu of another official language at school.[10][11]

By 2011, there were 84 SASL interpreters on DeafSA's interpreter register, including 43 without any training, 31 who have completed 240 study hours of interpreter training, and 10 who have gained an additional 3 years' experience and completed a further 480 study hours.[12] A total of seven SASL interpreters have actually been accredited by SATI/DeafSA.[13] SASL interpreters can apply for accreditation without having completed any formal training in SASL.[14]

## Status

[edit]

South African Sign Language is not entirely uniform and continues to evolve. Due to the geographical spread of its users and past educational policies, there are localised dialects of South African Sign Language and signs with many variants. Earlier efforts to create reference material and standardise the language, such as books[15] (1980 Talking to the Deaf,[16] 1994 Dictionary of SASL[17]), can only be used as historical records of the language. Daily TV broadcasts in sign language give today's South African Sign Language its national cohesion and unity.

### Official recognition

[edit]

See also: Legal recognition of sign languages § South Africa

Sign language is mentioned in four South African laws, namely the Constitution, the Use of Official Languages Act, the South African Schools Act, and the Pan South African Language Board Act.

In May 2022, the 18th Constitutional Amendment Bill to make SASL an official language, was published for public comment.[18] In May 2023 the bill was voted on by parliament, and on 19 July 2023 it was signed into law.[19]

#### General recognition

[edit]

The Constitution states that a board named the Pan South African Language Board should be established to "promote, and create conditions for, the development and use of ... sign language".[20] In terms of the law that establishes the Pan South African Language Board (Act 59 of 1995), the board may establish language bodies to advise it on "any particular language, sign language or augmentative and alternative communication".[21]

In terms of the Use of Official Languages Act, Act No. 12 of 2012, all government departments and government entities must have a language policy that states which languages are considered the official languages of that entity, and each language policy must also specify how that department or entity intends to communicate with people whose language of choice is "South African sign language".[22]

Until 2023, neither South African Sign Language nor any other sign language was an official language of South Africa. In 2008 the SASL Policy Implementation Conference gathered many key role players including scholars, researchers and teachers, policy makers, advocates and governmental bodies to promote South African Sign Language to become recognised as South Africa's twelfth official language.

#### Educational recognition

[edit]

According to the South African Schools Act, Act 84 of 1996, all schools must have a language policy, and that when selecting languages for such a policy, a "recognised Sign Language" should be evaluated as if it has official language status along with the other eleven official languages.[23]

According to the "Language in Education" policy in terms of section 3(4)(m) of the National Education Policy Act, Act 27 of 1996, the main aims of the Ministry of Education's policy for language in education include "to support the teaching and learning of all other languages required by learners or used by communities in South Africa, including languages used for religious purposes, languages which are important for international trade and communication, and South African Sign Language, as well as Alternative and Augmentative Communication".[24]

South African Sign Language is accepted as one of the languages of instruction in the education of Deaf learners.

### Demographics

[edit]

The number of deaf people in South Africa (600,000 deaf and 1.4 million people with hearing loss)[25] does not give an accurate depiction of the number of people who communicate in South African Sign Language. There is currently no estimate for the number of people who communicate in South African Sign Language in South Africa. Estimates vary greatly, from 700,000 to 2 million users.[26] A request was made to the Human Sciences Research Council (South Africa) to measure this as part of the 2011 census.[needs update]

## Linguistic features

[edit]

This section needs attention from an expert in Deaf. The specific problem is: the section contains practically nothing about the linguistics of SASL. WikiProject Deaf may be able to help recruit an expert. (May 2013)

|

### Fingerspelling

[edit]

South African Sign Language one-handed manual alphabet for fingerspelling

Fingerspelling is a manual technique of signing used to spell letters and numbers (numerals, cardinals). Therefore, fingerspelling is a sign language technique for borrowing words from spoken languages, as well as for spelling names of people, places and objects. It is a practical tool to refer to the written word.

Some words which are often fingerspelled tend to become signs in their own right (becoming "frozen"), following linguistic transformation processes such as alphanumeric incorporation and abbreviation. For instance, one of the sign-names for Cape Town uses incorporated fingerspelled letters C.T. ( transition from handshape for letter 'C' to letter 'T' of both wrists with rotation on an horizontal axis). The month of July is often abbreviated as 'J-L-Y'.

Fingerspelling words is not a substitute for using existing signs: it takes longer to sign and it is harder to perceive. If the fingerspelled word is a borrowing, fingerspelling depends on both users having knowledge of the oral language (English, Sotho, Afrikaans etc.). Although proper names (such as a person's name, a company name) are often fingerspelled, it is often a temporary measure until the Deaf community agrees on a Sign name replacement.

### Sign-names and Idioms

[edit]

Sign names are specific signs which are associated with proper names (a location, a person, an organisation). Sign names are often chosen based on a salient physical property. For instance:

* The sign name for Nelson Mandela is signed using a flat B-hand that follows a hair-line over the head.
* The sign name for the bank ABSA is made with both hands following the movement implied in the company corporate logo.

### Variation

[edit]

South Africa is one of a few countries to have legal recognition of sign language.[27] There is presumably some regional variation, but signers from across the country can readily understand each other, as demonstrated for example at the annual Deaf Forum.

It is commonly believed among South Africans, even among Deaf South Africans, that different language communities have different sign languages. This is evidently the result of the Deaf not being able to understand sign-language interpreters from other communities. However, this is because such "interpreters" do not actually use sign language, but rather Signed English, Signed Xhosa, etc., and only those who have been schooled in these artificial codes can understand them. (See manually coded language in South Africa.)

## History of education of the Deaf in South Africa

[edit]

BANZSL family tree

| | | | | | | | | | | | | Old British Sign Language
(c. 1760–1900)| | |

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| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Maritime SL
(c. 1860–present)| | | | | | | Swedish SL family?
(c. 1800–present)| |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Papua NG SL
(c. 1990–present)| | Auslan
(c. 1860–present)| | New Zealand SL
(c. 1870–present)| | British SL
(c. 1900–present)| | Northern Ireland SL
(c. 1920–present)| | South African SL
(c. 1860–present)

Timeline:[17]

* 1863 Irish nuns start training programmes in sign language
* 1874 Grimley Institute for the Deaf and Dumb established by Bridget Lynne in Cape Town
* 1881 De La Bat school established in Worcester
* 1920 Adoption of oralism in Deaf schools
* 1934 Separation between European and Non-European schools
* 1941 First school "for the Black Deaf" established
* 1984 Medium of education changed from vernacular (native tongue) to English in Department of Education and Training schools
* 1996 "Sign language" (but not specifically SASL) mentioned in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa as a language to be promoted

As early as 1863, Irish nuns were involved in training programmes for the Deaf.[17] Irish Sign Language, "originally heavily influenced by French Sign Language" is said to have had a noticeable influence in sign languages in the world, including in South Africa.[28]

In 1874 in Cape Town, the first institution for the Deaf called Grimley Institute for Deaf and Dumb was established by an Irish Deaf woman named Bridget Lynne.[29][30]

In 1881 in Worcester, De La Bat school for the Deaf was established.

From 1877, Dominican sisters started to settle near Durban. In 1884, Sister Stephanie Hanshuber from Germany introduced the oral method in South Africa.[31]

In 1888 "King William's Town Convent School for the Education of the Deaf" was formally opened.

"Since there is little historical evidence, it is presumed that South African Sign Language has a mixture of the Irish influence from the Dominican Irish nuns, and British influence as well as the American influence. (Sign Language is the natural language of the Deaf.)"[32]

## See also

[edit]

* South Africa portal
* Languages portal

* Sign language
* Languages of South Africa
* Manually coded language in South Africa

## Citations

[edit]

1. ^ South African Sign Language at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
2. ^ Ganiso, Mirriam Nosiphiwo (2012). Sign Language in South Africa: Language Planning and Policy Challenges (PDF) (MA thesis). Rhodes University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
3. ^ Aarons, Debra; Akach, Philemon (1998). "South African Sign Language – One Language or Many? A Sociolinguistic Question". Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics. 31: 1–28. doi:10.5774/31-0-55.
4. ^ "[Untitled]" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
5. ^ Aarons, Debra; Akach, Philemon. "South African Sign Language: One Language or Many?". In Mesthrie, Rajend (ed.). Language in South Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 127–147.
6. ^ "About Deaf Federation of South Africa (DeafSA)". Deaf Federation of South Africa. Archived from the original on 18 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
7. ^ PDF page 4, document page 114
8. ^ Jackson, Neels (13 February 2008). "'n Bybel in gebaretaal kom gou". argief.beeld.com (in Afrikaans). Archived from the original on 14 March 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
9. ^ Selzer, Marsanne (2010). South African Sign Language Used in Parliament: Is There a Need for Standardisation? (MPhil thesis). University of Stellenbosch. hdl:10019.1/4200.
10. ^ Reagan, Timothy (2008), "South African Sign Language and language-in-education policy in South Africa" (PDF), Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics, 38: 165–190, archived from the original (PDF) on 24 December 2010, retrieved 14 July 2010
11. ^ "Bill NO. 84 OF 1996", South African Schools Act, 1996, 1996, archived from the original on 16 December 2009, retrieved 2 August 2010
12. ^ DeafSA (2011) [Originally approved 2009]. "Policy on the Provision and Regulation of South African Sign Language Interpreters" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
13. ^ "South African Sign Language Interpreting National Centre". SASLINC.
14. ^ "Guidelines: SASL Interpreter Accreditation Testing" (PDF). South African Translators' Institute. n.d. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
15. ^ Lavanithum, Joseph (2008), "The impact of using graphic representations of signs in teaching signs to hearing mothers of deaf children" (PDF), PhD Thesis Augmentative and Alternative Communication, University of Pretoria: 20, retrieved 14 July 2010
16. ^ Nieder-Heitman, N. (1980), Talking to the Deaf. Praat met die Dowes. A visual manual of standardized signs for the Deaf in South AfricaLanguage policy and SASL: interpreters in the public service, South Africa: Government Printer
17. ^ a b c Penn, Claire; Ogilvy-Foreman, Dale; Doldin, Debbie; Landman, Kas; Jan, Steenekamp (1994), Dictionary of Southern African Signs for Communication with the Deaf, South Africa: Human Sciences Research Council (South Africa), pp. 599–613 [600], ISBN 0-7969-1523-7
18. ^ "Signing set to become official language | eNCA". enca.com. 29 May 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
19. ^ "President Cyril Ramaphosa: Signing ceremony of South African Sign Language Bill" - via gov.za.
20. ^ "Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Section 6.5.8.iii" (PDF) - via justice.gov.za.
21. ^ "Pan South African Language Board Act, Act 59 of 1995, Section 8(8)(b)". Archived from the original on 11 November 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2013 - via info.gov.za.
22. ^ "Use of Official Languages Act, Act No. 12 of 2012, Section 4.2(d)". Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2013 - via info.gov.za.
23. ^ "South African Schools Act, Act 84 of 1996, Section 6(4)". Archived from the original on 27 August 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013 - via info.gov.za.
24. ^ "Language in Education" policy in terms of section 3(4)(m) of the National Education Policy Act, Act 27 of 1996
25. ^ (2003). DeafSA Information Booklet. South Africa: DeafSA.
26. ^ South African Sign Language. https://writeservice.info/2024/10/13/south-african-sign-language
27. ^ Walker, Lou Ann (1987). A Loss for Words: The Story of Deafness in a Family. New York: HarperPerennial. p. 31\. ISBN 0-06-091425-4.
28. ^ Lucas, Ceil (2001), The Sociolinguistics of sign languages, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge University Press, p. 29, ISBN 0-521-79137-5
29. ^ Heap, Marion; Morgans, Helen (2006), "11", Language policy and SASL: interpreters in the public service, South Africa: Human Sciences Research Council (South Africa), pp. 134–147 [141], ISBN 0-7969-2137-7
30. ^ Boner, K (2000), Dominican women: A time to speak, Pietermaritzburg: Cluster Press
31. ^ A Short History of St Vincent School, 2009, archived from the original on 21 May 2010, retrieved 14 July 2010
32. ^ Morgans, Helen (1999), Where did South African Sign Language Originate?, Language Matters, vol. 30, South Africa: Routledge Informa Ltd, pp. 53–58, doi:10.1080/10228199908566144

## External links

[edit]

General information:

* About.com Sign Language in South Africa.

Organisations:

* DeafSA – Deaf South Africa, national non-governmental organisation
* DTV – Deaf TV is a South African Sign Language studio with weekly broadcast on national TV.
* National Institute for the Deaf (NID) – non-profit / non-governmental organisation for the Deaf - Worcester, South Africa.
* South African Sign Language Interpretation National Centre – Interpreting services

Learning:

* LearnSASL.com – South African Sign Language Video dictionary.
* Realsasl.com – South African Sign Language dictionary searchable by handshape, location or text.
* University of Witwatersrand – SASL courses

Research resources:

* University of Western Cape – SASL project 'iSign' and 'PhoneReader'
* University of the Free State – Afroasiatic Studies, Sign Language and Language Practice – offers linguistic B.A. and M.A. courses .
* University of Stellenbosch – English Text to South African Sign Language (SASL) Project
* Sutton SignWriting – Dictionary of South African Sign Language sign represented in a graphical form.

* v
* t
* e

Languages of South Africa

* Pan South African Language Board
* Commission for Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Community Rights
* Department of Arts and Culture

Official|

| West Germanic|

* Afrikaans
* English

|

Southern Bantu|

| Sotho–Tswana|

* Northern Sotho (Sesotho sa Leboa)
* Southern Sotho (Sesotho)
* Tswana (Setswana)

|

Nguni|

* Southern Ndebele (isiNdebele)
* Swazi (siSwati)
* Xhosa (isiXhosa)
* Zulu (isiZulu)

Tswa–Ronga|

* Tsonga (Xitsonga)

Venda|

* Venda (Tshivenḓa)

Recognised
unofficial languages
mentioned in the
1996 constitution|

| Indigenous|

* Bhaca
* Khoe
* Khoisan
* Lala
* Lozi
* Nama
* Nhlangwini
* Northern Ndebele
* Phuthi
* Tuu

|

Foreign|

* German
* Greek
* Gujarati
* Hindi
* Portuguese
* Malay (historical)
* Tamil
* Telugu
* Urdu

Religious|

* Arabic
* Hebrew
* Sanskrit

Other|

| LGBTQ slang|

* Gayle
* IsiNgqumo

|

Other|

* Tsotsitaal and Camtho
* Oorlams Creole
* Fanagalo
* Pretoria Sotho
* Scamto
* SA Sign Language
* Angloromani
* Kaaps

* v
* t
* e

Sign language

* List of sign languages
* List by number of signers

Language
families[a]|

Sign languages by family

Australian
Aboriginal
(multiple families)[c]|

* Diyari
* Djingili
* Eltye eltyarrenke
* Iltyeme iltyeme
* Jaralde
* Kalkutungu
* Miriwoong
* Mudburra
* Pitha Pitha
* Rdaka rdaka
* Umpila
* Far North Queensland
* Warlmanpa
* Warluwara
* Warramunga
* Worora Kinship
* Yan-nhaŋu
* Yir Yoront
* Yolŋu

| Western Desert|

* Kartutjarra
* Manjiljarra
* Ngaatjatjarra

|

Zendath Kesign|

* Meriam
* Western Torres Strait Islander

Arab (Ishaaric)|

* Egyptian
* Kuwaiti
* Libyan
* Qatari Unified
* Yemeni

Iraqi–
Levantine|

* Iraqi

Levantine|

* Jordanian
* Lebanese
* Palestinian
* Syrian

Possible|

* Emirati
* Saudi
* Omani

BANZSL|

* Auslan
* Papua New Guinean (PNGSL)
* British (BSL)
* Northern Ireland (NISL)
* Fijian
* Maritime (MSL)
* New Zealand (NZSL)
* Samoan
* South African (SASL)

Swedish Sign|

* Eritrean (EriSL)
* Finland-Swedish (FinSSL)
* Portuguese (LGP)
* Swedish (Teckenspråk)
* Finnish (Viittomakieli)

Chinese Sign|

* Chinese (CSL/ZGS)
* Shanghai
* Hong Kong (HKSL)
* Macau

Chilean-Paraguayan-
Uruguayan Sign|

* Chilean (LSCh)

Paraguayan-
Uruguayan Sign|

* Paraguay (LSPY)
* Uruguay (LSU)

Francosign|

* Algerian (LSA)
* Swiss-German (DSGS)
* Estonian (Eesti viipekeel)
* Irish (ISL)
* Australian-Irish
* Brazilian (Libras)
* Lithuanian
* Catalan (LSC)
* Valencian (LSV)
* French (LSF)
* Old French[c]
* Romanian (LSR)

American
(ASLic)|

* American (ASL)
* Black ASL (BASL)
* Protactile
* Bolivian
* Burmese
* Yangon
* Mandalay
* Cambodian
* Costa Rican
* Dominican
* Jamaican
* Malaysian (BIM)
* Oneida (OSL)
* Panamanian
* Filipino (FSL)
* Puerto Rican (PRSL)
* Quebec (LSQ)
* Singapore (SgSL)

Indonesian (Nusantaric)|

* Indonesian (Bisindo)
* Jakarta
* Yogyakarta

Francophone African
(Françafrosign)|

* Ethiopian
* Chadian
* Ghanaian
* Guinean
* Bamako (LaSiMa)
* Moroccan
* Nigerian
* Sierra Leonean

Mixed, Hand Talk|

* Oneida (OSL)

Mixed, Hoailona ʻŌlelo|

* Creole Hawaiʻi Sign Language (CHSL)

Mixed, French (LSF)|

* Greek (ΕΝΓ/ENG)
* Cypriot (ΚΝΓ/KNG)

Austro-
Hungarian|

| Russian Sign|

* Bulgarian (БЖЕ)
* Georgian
* Kazakh-Russian (KSL/KRSL)
* Latvian (LSL)
* Mongolian
* Russian (РЖЯ)

|

Yugoslavic Sign|

* Croatian (HZJ)
* Kosovar
* Serbian
* Slovenian
* Yugoslav (YSL)

Dutch Sign|

* Dutch (NGT)
* Gambian

Italian Sign|

* Italian (LIS)
* Tunisian (TSL)

Mexican Sign|

* Mexican (LSM)
* Honduran (LESHO)

Old Belgian|

* Flemish (VGT)
* French Belgian (LSFB)

Danish (Tegnic)|

* Malagasy
* Icelandic (Táknmál)
* Norwegian (Tegnspråk)
* Danish (Tegnsprog)
* Teknmál

Viet-Thai|

* Hai Phong
* Hanoi
* Ho Chi Minh
* Thai (TSL/MSTSL)

German Sign|

* German (DGS)
* Polish (PJM)
* Israeli (Shassi)

Indo-Pakistani
Sign|

* Bangalore-Madras
* Beluchistan
* Bengali
* Bombay
* Calcutta
* Delhi
* Nepali
* North West Frontier Province
* Punjab-Sindh

Japanese Sign|

* Japanese (JSL/Nihon Shuwa)
* Korean (KSL/Hanguk Sueo)
* Taiwanese (TSL/Taiwan Shouyu)

Kentish[c]|

* Old Kentish
* Chilmark
* Martha's Vineyard (MVSL)

Mayan (Meemul Tziij)|

* Highland Maya
* Yucatec
* Chicán
* Nohkop
* Nohya
* Trascorral
* Cepeda Peraza

Original Thai Sign|

* Chiangmai
* Hai Phong
* Old Bangkok

Paget Gorman|

* Namibian (NSL)

Plains Sign Language|

* Anishinaabe
* Apsáalooke
* Arikara
* Chaticks si Chaticks
* Cheyenne
* Coahuilteco
* Dane-zaa
* Diné
* Hinono'eino
* Hiraacá
* Icāk
* Karankawa
* Liksiyu
* Maagiadawa
* Meciciya ka pekiskwakehk
* Nakota
* Ni Mii Puu
* Niimíipuu
* Niitsítapi
* Nųmą́khų́·ki
* Nʉmʉnʉʉ
* Omaha
* Palus
* Piipaash
* Ppáⁿkka
* Schitsu'umsh
* Shiwinna
* Sioux
* Taos
* Tickanwa•tic
* Tháumgá
* Tsuu T'ina
* Umatilla
* Wazhazhe
* Wichita
* Wíyut'a / Wíblut'e
* Wyandot

Mixed, American (ASL)|

* Oneida (OSL)

Plateau|

* A'aninin
* Kalispel
* Ktunaxa (ʾa·qanⱡiⱡⱡitnam)
* Nesilextcl'n
* Shuswap (Secwepemcékst)
* Sqeliz

Providencia–
Cayman Sign|

* Providence Island (Provisle)
* Old Cayman (Guyanese)

Isolates|

* Afghan
* Al-Sayyid Bedouin (ABSL)
* Albanian (AlbSL)
* Albarradas Sign Language
* Alipur
* Argentine (LSA)
* Armenian
* Caucasian (Harsneren)[c]
* Azerbaijani (AİD)
* Belizean
* Bhutanese
* Tibetan (Bökyi lagda)
* Bribri
* Brunca
* Cena
* Chatino
* Cuban (LSC)
* Navajo/Diné Family
* Dogon/Douentza
* Ecuadorian (LSEC)
* Enga
* Ghandruk
* Ghardaia (AJSL)
* Guatemalan (Lensegua)
* Guinea-Bissau
* Henniker[c]
* Hawaiʻi (Hoailona ʻŌlelo)
* Creole HSL
* Inuit
* Atgangmuurniq
* Greenlandic (Ussersuataarneq)
* Jhankot
* Jumla
* Ka'apor
* Kajana
* Kafr Qasim
* Kailge
* Kata Kolok
* Kenyan (KSL/LAK)
* Somali (SSL)
* Keresan Pueblo (KPISL/Keresign)
* Kisindo
* Jamaican Country (KS/Konchri Sain)
* Macedonian
* Maltese (LSM)
* Hausa (HSL/Magannar Hannu)
* Mardin
* Mauritian (MSL)
* M'bour
* Mehek
* Miyakubo Shuwa
* Burkina (Mossi)
* Mount Avejaha
* Mozambican
* Naga
* Nicaraguan (ISN)
* Old Costa Rican
* Ottoman (Seraglio/Harem)
* Ban Khor (Pasa kidd)
* Penang
* Persian
* Peruvian (LSP)
* Inmaculada
* Qahveh Khaneh
* Rennellese[c]
* Rossel Island
* Rwandan (AKR/AMR)
* Sandy River[c]
* Salvadoran
* Sinasina
* Sivia
* Spanish (LSE)
* Tebul
* Trinidad and Tobago (TTSL)
* Turkish (TİD)
* Ugandan (USL)
* Venezuelan (LSV/VSL)
* Wanib
* West African
* Adamorobe (AdaSL / Mumu kasa)
* Bura (Burasl)
* Mofu-Gudur
* Nanabin (NanabinSL)
* Yoruban (YSL)
* Zambian

Other groupings|

* Amami Shuwa languages
* Ethiopian languages
* Laotian languages
* Sri Lankan languages
* Sudanese languages (~150)[b]
* Tanzanian languages (7+)[b]
* Zimsign languages

* International Sign

By region[a]|

Sign languages by region

Africa|

Algeria
Algerian
Ghardaia
Cameroon
Maroua
Ghana
Adamorobe (AdaSL / Mumu kasa)
Nanabin
Ivory Coast
Bouakako (LaSiBo)
Kenya
Kenyan
Mali
Tebul
Bamako (LaSiMa)
Nigeria
Bura
Hausa (Magannar Hannu)
Senegal
Mbour
Somalia, Somaliland & Djibouti
Somali
South Africa
South African
Tanzania
Tanzanian
Uganda
Ugandan
Zambia
Zambian

Asia|

Bengal
Bengali
Cambodia
Cambodian
China
Chinese
Hong Kong
Hong Kong (HKSL)
India
Alipur
Bengali
Indo-Pakistani
Naga
Indonesia
Indonesian
Kata Kolok (Benkala, Balinese)
Iran
Persian
Iraq
Iraqi
Kurdish
Israel
Al-Sayyid Bedouin
Ghardaia
Israeli
Kafr Qasem
Japan
Japanese
Koniya
Miyakubo
Korea
Korean
Kazakhstan
Kazakh-Russian
Laos
Laotian
Malaysia
Malaysian
Penang
Selangor
Maldives
Maldives
Mongolia
Mongolian
Nepal
Ghandruk
Jhankot
Jumla
Nepalese
Philippines
Filipino
Saudi Arabia
Saudi
Singapore
Singapore
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan
Taiwan
Taiwanese
Tajikistan
Russian
Tibet
Tibetan (Bökyi lagda)
Thailand
Old Bangkok
Chiangmai
Thai
Ban Khor (Pasa kidd)
Vietnam
Vietnamese

Europe|

Armenia
Armenian
Austria
Austrian
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijani
Belgium
Flemish
French Belgian
United Kingdom
British
Croatia
Croatian
Denmark
Danish
Faroese (Teknmál)
Estonia
Estonian
Finland
Finnish
France
Ghardaia
French
Lyons
Germany
German
Greece
Greek
Hungary
Hungarian
Iceland
Icelandic
Ireland
Irish
Italy
Italian
Kosovo
Yugoslav (Kosovar)
Latvia
Latvian
Lithuania
Lithuanian
Moldova
Russian
Netherlands
Dutch
North Macedonia
Macedonian
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Norway
Norwegian
Poland
Polish
Portugal
Portuguese
Russia
Russian
Slovenia
Slovenian
Spain
Catalan
Spanish
Valencian
Sweden
Swedish
Switzerland
Swiss-German
Turkey
Central Taurus
Mardin
Turkish
Ukraine
Ukrainian

North and
Central
America|

Plains Sign Talk
Belize
Belizean
Canada
American (ASL)

Black ASL
Protactile
Blackfoot
Cree
Ojibwa
Oneida
Maritime (MSL)
Quebec
Inuit (Atgangmuurniq)
Plateau
Cayman
Old Cayman
Costa Rica
Bribri
Brunca
Old Costa Rican
New Costa Rican
Cuba
Cuban
Greenland
Greenlandic (Ussersuataarneq)
Guatemala
Guatemalan
Mayan
Haiti
Haitian
Honduras
Honduran
Mexico
Albarradas
Chatino
Mayan
Mexican
Nicaragua
Nicaraguan
Panama
Chiriqui
Panamanian
El Salvador
Salvadoran
Old Salvadoran
United States
American (ASL)

Black ASL
Protactile
Blackfeet
Cree
Cheyenne
Ojibwa
Oneida
Keresan (Keresign)
Martha's Vineyard
Navajo
Navajo Family
Sandy River Valley
Henniker

Oceania|

Australia
Auslan
Australian-Irish
Akitiri (Eltye eltyarrenke)
Far North Queensland Indigenous
Arrernte (Iltyeme iltyeme)
Warlpiri (Rdaka rdaka)
Manjiljarra
Warlmanpa
Warumungu (Warramunga)
Mudbura (Mudburra)
Ngada
Umpila

Far North Queensland
Western Desert
Western Torres Strait Islander
Yir Yoront
Yolŋu
Hawaii (USA)
Hawaiʻan (Haoilona ʻŌlelo)
New Zealand
New Zealand (NZSL)
Papua New Guinea
Enga
Kailge
Mehek
Mount Avejaha
Papua New Guinean (PNGSL)
Rossel Island
Sinasina
Wanib
Samoa and American Samoa
Samoan

South America|

Argentina
Argentine (LSA)
Bolivia
Bolivian
Brazil
Brazilian (Libras)
Cena
Ka'apor
Chile
Chilean
Colombia
Colombian
Provisle
Ecuador
Ecuadorian
Paraguay
Paraguayan
Peru
Inmaculada
Peruvian
Sivia
Uruguay
Uruguayan
Venezuela
Venezuelan

International|

* International Sign
* Makaton
* Monastic
* Signalong

ASL|

* Grammar
* Idioms
* Literature
* Profanity
* Name signs

Extinct
languages|

* Chilmark
* Diyari
* Jaralde
* Kalkutungu
* Henniker Sign Language
* Martha's Vineyard
* Old French
* Old Kent
* Plateau Sign Language
* Pitha Pitha
* Sandy River Valley Sign Language
* Warluwara

Linguistics|

* Grammar (ASL)
* Bimodal bilingualism
* Phonology (ASL)
* Handshape / Location / Orientation / Movement / Expression
* Mouthing
* Nonmanual feature
* Sign names

Fingerspelling|

* American
* British (two-handed)
* Catalan
* Chilean
* Esperanto
* French
* German
* Hungarian
* Irish
* Japanese
* Korean
* Polish
* Russian
* Serbo-Croatian
* Spanish
* Ukrainian
* Portuguese

Writing|

* ASL-phabet
* Hamburg Notation System
* Stokoe notation
* SignWriting
* si5s
* ASLwrite ()

Language
contact|

* Contact sign
* Initialized sign
* Mouthing

Signed Oral
Languages|

* Indian Signing System
* Manually coded English
* Manually coded language in South Africa
* Manually Coded Malay
* Paget Gorman Sign System
* Signed Dutch
* Signed French
* Signed German
* Signed Italian
* Signed Japanese
* Signed Polish
* Signed Spanish
* Signing Exact English
* Signed Swedish

Others|

* Bilingual–bicultural education
* Manually coded language

Media|

* Films (list)
* Television shows (list)

Persons|

* Jabbar Baghtcheban
* Jeanette Berglind
* Pär Aron Borg
* Thomas Braidwood
* Laurent Clerc
* Abbé de l'Épée
* Roger Fouts
* Valerie Sutton
* Thomas Gallaudet
* Abbé Sicard
* William Stokoe
* Pierre Pélissier

Organisations|

* Association of Visual Language Interpreters of Canada
* International Center on Deafness and the Arts
* Mimics and Gesture Theatre
* World Association of Sign Language Interpreters

Miscellaneous|

* Baby sign language
* CHCI chimpanzee center (Washoe, Loulis)
* Open Outcry
* Legal recognition
* U.S. Army hand and arm signals
* Monastic sign languages
* Tactile signing
* Protactile
* Tic-tac

^a Sign-language names reflect the region of origin. Natural sign languages are not related to the spoken language used in the same region. For example, French Sign Language originated in France, but is not related to French. Conversely, ASL and BSL both originated in English-speaking countries but are not related to each other; ASL however is related to French Sign Language.

^b Denotes the number (if known) of languages within the family. No further information is given on these languages.

^c Italics indicate extinct languages.
*[c.]: circa
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