The focus of this article is on deafblind people who are or have been involved with deaf signing communities and, when vision changes, transition to tactile reception of sign language. This brings about a disconnection with the signing community, exploration of (other) possibilities, and seeking or creating deaf blind spaces. In the United States,…

This article explores turn-taking in Japanese Sign Language ( JSL) by using Baker's (1977) framework. JSL as a language is wholly unrelated to American Sign Language (ASL), but because Baker and other discourse analysts have always been concerned mostly with ASL and European sign languages, it remains to be seen if Asian sign languages such as JSL…

This article explores current creative practices involving the representation of sign languages, sign language interpreting, sign language translation (Napier and Leeson 2016; HBB4ALL 2017; CNLSE 2017; Tamayo 2022), and sign language live translation (Tamayo 2022) in audiovisual content. To that end, a review of the concept "creative sign…

The article poses questions about which (meta)linguistic discourses and processes take place among Deaf queers in Berlin, Germany: Which topics and reflection processes they deal with?; Which expressions, self-designations, and foreign appellations in sign language do Deaf queers consider as acceptable or as discriminatory?; How can the Deaf-queer…

Recent research has shown that a distinct variety of American Sign Language, known as Black ASL, developed in the segregated schools for deaf African Americans in the US South during the pre-civil rights era. Research has also shown that in some respects Black ASL is closer than most white varieties to the standard taught in ASL classes and found…

Despite the fact that Indian Sign Language (ISL) has a significant influence on the native signers in northeastern India, no studies of ISL have yet taken into account the nature of the sign languages in use in this region. This article examines the emergence of both Shillong Sign Language and the Deaf community of Shillong and discusses the…

The past three decades of activism for linguistic human rights (Skutnabb-Kangas 2000) have witnessed examples of language planning by various national and supranational actors in national and international spaces, with an exchange of ideas and strategies employed by national, regional, and worldwide organizations. In many countries a key goal of…

A sociolinguistic survey of the sign language used by the deaf communities of Peru was conducted in November and December of 2007. For eight weeks, our survey team visited six deaf communities in the cities of Lima, Arequipa, Cusco, Trujillo, Chiclayo, and Iquitos. Using sociolinguistic questionnaires and recorded text testing (RTT) tools, we…

Washoe, the chimpanzee pioneer who learned aspects of American Sign Language, died in October 2007. In reviewing her life and accomplishments, this article focuses on Washoe's status as an ape and a person, and on the role of emotion in language learning and language use. It argues that Washoe's legacy stems not from the number of ASL signs she…

This article reviews eighteenth- and nineteenth-century proceedings of the London Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey) that involved deaf people. The use, role, and status of sign language and interpreters in these settings are described. These proceedings provide important information about deaf people's experiences within the court system of the…

In this article I analyze two cases that are the result of parents' complaints against education authorities for alleged indirect discrimination on the basis of their child's lack of access to instruction through Auslan in regular school settings. Although bilingual/bicultural programs for deaf students in Australia are available in some special…