View Full Version : alphabet?
I might have done this twice, Iam sorry. I am not
sure how to manuevar around yet.
How are the handshapes r, q,f, g related to the
english alphabet? I cant see an r or q or f or g shape.
thankyou,
sorry again if i did this twice!!! :p
jenml
06-13-2006, 06:34 PM
They are not related to the English alphabet... ;)
Some signs happen to be "iconic", and some signs are "arbitrary". ASL is most closely linked to FSL (French Sign Language). BSL (British) use two hands for their signed alphabet, and they have the same written letters as Americans (I only know A-G and then the vowels...).
Interesting!
that was great information. What does iconic mean?
thankyou
jenml
06-13-2006, 06:41 PM
that was great information. What does iconic
Like the sign actually looks like the thing that you are signing (like BOOK, TREE, CUP).
There are other signs that are really arbitrary (random) and we can bring meaning to them by trying to rememebr then in a special way (like how Rachel trys to make connections for people when she says... "it's just like....", and it's not really, but using your imagination, you can picture it and try to remember it... but if you didn't know it, it wouldn't be as obvious as some of the iconic signs).
Hope that helps...
Interesting information. I've often wondered why there isn't a universal sign language? Then people of any country could learn it and all have a common language.
Lezliej
06-15-2006, 04:31 PM
Same reason there isn't a universal spoken language. There was/is an effort to come up with one. It was called Gestuno, I believe.
jenml
06-17-2006, 05:53 PM
Same reason there isn't a universal spoken language. There was/is an effort to come up with one. It was called Gestuno, I believe.
Right... and even that wasn't successful.
Just take ASL... There's only one ASL, but check out ALL the regional variations... that's what happens. That's the nature of our ever-changing world.