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How is Sign Language Different From English other than being a Visual Language?
Sign language is not a spoken language, but a visual language. Different countries have their own sign language too. ASL (American Sign Language) is very similar to English. Children learn sign language the way they learn English, sign language has the same words as the English language, and even brain damage can affect sign language just as it affects English language. Although sign language is similar to English, they are also very different. Other than being a visual language, sign language has its own grammar. There are no capital letters, commas, or periods in sign language. Also, there are no names in sign language. To say a name, you can either spell out that name using letters, or make a personal sign that means a certain person’s name. To say a scentence in sign language, most people prefer the word order Subject-Verb-Object, though the order Object-Subject-Verb is also grammtically correct.
Sign language is not a spoken language, but a visual language. Different countries have their own sign language too. ASL (American Sign Language) is very similar to English. Children learn sign language the way they learn English, sign language has the same words as the English language, and even brain damage can affect sign language just as it affects English language. Although sign language is similar to English, they are also very different. Other than being a visual language, sign language has its own grammar. There are no capital letters, commas, or periods in sign language. Also, there are no names in sign language. To say a name, you can either spell out that name using letters, or make a personal sign that means a certain person’s name. To say a scentence in sign language, most people prefer the word order Subject-Verb-Object, though the order Object-Subject-Verb is also grammtically correct.
Why do different countries have their own sign language?
Sign language is not something someone just made and taught to the whole deaf community. The reason different countries have their own language has to do with the language’s developments. Groups of deaf people came together with other deaf people in their area and developed a visual language of their own. The visual languages these people made were all different from each other. Eventually the languages were expanding and more and more people were learning them. The visual language was not known as sign language until a few years later when it became an official language. By doing this, certain countries have developed their own sign languages.
"I lived for a year in Scotland. British sign language (BSL) is very different from American". -King Jordan
Sign language is not something someone just made and taught to the whole deaf community. The reason different countries have their own language has to do with the language’s developments. Groups of deaf people came together with other deaf people in their area and developed a visual language of their own. The visual languages these people made were all different from each other. Eventually the languages were expanding and more and more people were learning them. The visual language was not known as sign language until a few years later when it became an official language. By doing this, certain countries have developed their own sign languages.
"I lived for a year in Scotland. British sign language (BSL) is very different from American". -King Jordan
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Why is it so Important That People Learn Sign Language?
There are about 1,000,000 deaf people in America, or 0.38% of the population. Some may be able to read lips, or determine what you are saying by watching your lips move as you speak, but sign language is the most commonly used form of communication for those who are deaf. It is also the fourth most used language in America. America is estimated to have about 500,000 to 2,000,000 sign language speakers. That’s very few people that deaf people can talk to! The more people who know Sign Language, the more opportunities there are for deaf people to communicate with others.
There are about 1,000,000 deaf people in America, or 0.38% of the population. Some may be able to read lips, or determine what you are saying by watching your lips move as you speak, but sign language is the most commonly used form of communication for those who are deaf. It is also the fourth most used language in America. America is estimated to have about 500,000 to 2,000,000 sign language speakers. That’s very few people that deaf people can talk to! The more people who know Sign Language, the more opportunities there are for deaf people to communicate with others.