Swiss-German Sign Language
| Swiss-German Sign Language | |
|---|---|
| DSGS | |
| Native to | Switzerland, Liechtenstein |
| Native speakers | 7,500 (2011)[1] |
| Language family |
possibly French SL
|
| Writing system | SignWriting |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | sgg |
Swiss-German Sign Language (German: Deutschschweizer Gebärdensprache, abbreviated DSGS) is the primary deaf sign language of the German-speaking part of Switzerland. The language was established around 1828.[2] In 2011 it was estimated that 7,500 deaf and 13,000 hearing people use DSGS.[1] There are six dialects which developed in boarding schools for the deaf, in Zurich, Bernese, Basel, Lucerne, and St. Gallen, as well as in Liechtenstein.[1]
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Name [edit]
In Switzerland, the language is called Gebärdensprache (Sign language) if a distinction from other languages is not required. In some sources it's called Natürliche Gebärden or Natürliche Gebärdensprache,[3] or Swiss Sign Language (Langage gestuel suisse).[2] The former just means 'natural sign', like those for "sleep" or "eat", in contrast to Abstrakte Gebärden 'conceptual sign',[4] and this term is therefore no longer used. Most English sources today uses the term German-Swiss Sign Language or Swiss-German Sign Language.[5][6]
Classification [edit]
Wittmann (1991) suspects that Swiss-German Sign Language may be part of the French Sign Language family, but it is not close and this is not easy to demonstrate.[2]
In Switzerland, the parentage of this language is still in research. A research, if DSGS could be a derivat of the German Sign Language (DGS) is planned, but it was observed, DSGS signers often are more open for borrowing loan signs from LSF-SR, the French Sign Language dialect of the Suisse Romande, and less from the DGS.[1]
Literature [edit]
Two books have been published in SignWriting.[1]
External links [edit]
- Swiss Deaf Federation: Web dictionary of the Swiss German Sign Language
- Interkantonale Hochschule für Heilpädagogik: Business dictionary of the Swiss German Sign Language
References [edit]
- ^ a b c d e Braem, Penny Boyes: Gebärdenspracharbeit in der Schweiz: Rückblick und Ausblick, Hamburg: Zeitschrift für Sprache und Kultur Gehörloser
- ^ a b c Wittmann, Henri (1991). "Classification linguistique des langues signées non vocalement." Revue québécoise de linguistique théorique et appliquée 10:1.215–88.[1]
- ^ Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Swiss-German Sign Language
- ^ Deutsche Hörbehinderten Selbsthilfe e.v.: Gebärdensprache
- ^ IANA: Language tag assignment for German Swiss Sign Language
- ^ Center for sign language research: Bibliography
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