Dreams and Aspirations

Here are a few signs that illustrate what some people's dreams may be. 

The sign for "Dream" is:

Here are a few signs that show a minimal selection of dreams that people may have:

Famous

This can be preceded by the sign for world, shown in the video below for travel the world, which says "Internationally Famous"

Expand my Business

This is a combination of the signs "Expand" and "Business", which it being directed towards yourself to express ownership of the business







The sign for firefighter begins at the chin and goes right over the head to the back of the neck

Firefighter

Flight Attendant

Get Married

The same sign can apply to both a male and a female

Nurse

Travel The World

This is a combination of the sign for "Travel" moving in a circle to show the travelling of the world, and the sign for "World".

Hobbies

A range of signs for different hobbies:

DANCING

NETBALL

SKIING

SOCCER

SWIMMING

WALKING

YOGA

Non-manual Features

Non-manual features (NMF) are another parameter of Auslan in addition to HOLM. 

NMF alone do not have any particular meaning, but are very important when  used in conjunction with lexical and depicting signs to add emphasis or additional meaning. 

Below is a table that shows all the NMFs one could add to their signing.

Source:
Johnston, T. & Schrembi, A. (2007). Australian Sign Language: An introduction to sign language linguistics. Cambridge University, p97. Accessed via: http://deafsocietynsw.org.au/documents/SignLanguage1Handouts.pdf 

Parameters of Auslan

There are different parameters available in Auslan that can be modified to convey meaning and show different words; these can be shortened to the acronym HOLM. 

H - Handshape

Communication

Interview

The only difference between these two signs is the hand shape, with communication a closed fist and interview with the little finger upwards.


O - Orientation

The direction the hands are moving are also very important in their meaning.

<--- Paper

<---- Drug















L - Location

The positioning of the hands in relation to the body can change their meaning greatly

Dinner

Sister

M - Movement

Depending on the direction the hands move, or not move, can explicitly change their meaning.

Hello

Stop

Source: Blyth, J. (2014). EDUC20076 Vocabulary and Lexicalised Signs: Course Notes. Melbourne: Univeristy of Melbourne.

Entity

Depicting Signs can be used to show entity. 


One finger can be used to depict a single person, or a child if shown smaller.

Two fingers can be used to depict two people together, or if more fingers are shown it can indicate a group of people.

A pointing finger is used to depict an animal; although in order to convey meaning it should be accompanied by the lexical sign for the name of the animal, or a visual description of what the animal looks like or its personality.

It can also be used to depict a bicycle when in comparison to the sign for transport below as bikes are much smaller.

The palm is used to depict a car or other transport, however should also be used with a lexical sign and a description for how fast the car is going, or the direction etc. 

Numbers

The above video depicts the numbers 1 - 20, as well as 100 and 1000. Numbers that indicate age originate from the nose of the person, however, if it is simply a number it is signed in the neutral space as shown above.

What are depicting signs?

Depicting signs are "partly lexical signs, composites of linguistic and gestural elements" (Johnston & Schembri, 2010) that are used to show what the signer is trying to say so the viewer can picture it. They are used quite often in story telling and informal conversations to give context and description. 

For Example:                         CAR

Lexicalised sign for car

The lexicalised sign for car is two fists moving in circles in opposite directions to each other. It is used when simply saying the word car in conversation.

Depicting Sign for Car

The depicting sign for car is used when describing the direction the car is travelling, whether it is moving fast, or slow, and can be used as a shape indicator. 

The hand shape depicted in the photo at left with the palm is used to depict cars and other forms of transport - to differentiate it can be done by signing the lexical sign first, followed by the depicting sign for more descriptive information. 








Source: 
Johnston, T. & Schembri, A. (2010). Variation, lexicalization and grammaticalization in signed langauges. Langage et societe, 131(March), 19-35.

Swann, D. (2014). EDUC20076 Visual Communication and Depicting Signs: Course notes. Melbourne: The University of Melbourne

Etiquette when using Signing Interpreters

When I first came into contact with deaf people communicating through interpreters, I was slightly uncertain how best to communicate using two different forms; spoken and written.

I have learnt a few basic rules that will help conversation run smoothly as well as being respectful to the deaf person signing:

1. Look at the person signing and not at their interpreter as it is them you are having the conversation with and address all comments and questions directly to them. 

Picture source: http://deafreview.com/deafreview-news/10-tips-for-hiring-qualified-sign-language-interpreters/ 


2. Remember to be considerate to the person signing as it is all visual communication; for example, make sure the room is well lit, the deaf person can see the interpreter, and that you just speak at your normal pace as the interpreter is able to keep up.

3. If you are unsure of how you should act, it is okay to ask. 

Source: Linder, S. (2014). EDUC20076 Auslan Conversation and Social Protocols: Course Notes. Melbourne: University of Melbourne

Yes & No

The lexical sign for no moves left and right

The lexical sign for yes moves up and down, to imitate the nodding of a head

Finger spelling and Alphabet

English words that are translated into Auslan are often spelt using finger spelling. Finger spelling depicts the English alphabet and is used when signing people's names, many locations and proper nouns, as well as any other words borrowed from English that don't directly translate into a single sign. 

It is important to note, however, that although the sign is being spelt, it should be seen as a pattern forming the sign rather than the individual finger signs; as when reading English we see it as a single word as opposed to individual letters. 

Source:
Linder, S. (2014). EDUC20076 Auslan Conversation and Social Protocols: Course Notes. Melbourne: University of Melbourne