Functions of Head and Body Movements in Austrian Sign Language
Functions of Head and Body Movements in Austrian Sign Language

Author: Andrea Lackner

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2017-12-04

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 1501507753

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Over the past decades, the field of sign language linguistics has expanded considerably. Recent research on sign languages includes a wide range of subdomains such as reference grammars, theoretical linguistics, psycho- and neurolinguistics, sociolinguistics, and applied studies on sign languages and Deaf communities. The SLDC series is concerned with the study of sign languages in a comprehensive way, covering various theoretical, experimental, and applied dimensions of sign language research and their relationship to Deaf communities around the world. The series provides a multidisciplinary.

Sign Languages of the World
Sign Languages of the World

Author: Julie Bakken Jepsen

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2015-10-16

Total Pages: 1018

ISBN-13: 1614518173

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Although a number of edited collections deal with either the languages of the world or the languages of particular regions or genetic families, only a few cover sign languages or even include a substantial amount of information on them. This handbook provides information on some 38 sign languages, including basic facts about each of the languages, structural aspects, history and culture of the Deaf communities, and history of research. This information will be of interest not just to general audiences, including those who are deaf, but also to linguists and students of linguistics. By providing information on sign languages in a manner accessible to a less specialist audience, this volume fills an important gap in the literature.

Lexical Nonmanuals in German Sign Language
Lexical Nonmanuals in German Sign Language

Author: Nina-Kristin Pendzich

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2020-05-05

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 3110671662

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The book presents an empirical and theoretical investigation of lexical nonmanuals in German Sign Language including torso, head, and facial expressions. Three empirical studies demonstrate the relevance of nonmanuals for the wellformedness of signs, their meaning, and lexical processing. Moreover, implications for the theoretical implementation of lexical nonmanuals concerning, e.g., articulation patterns and phonological status are discussed.

SignGram Blueprint
SignGram Blueprint

Author: Josep Quer

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2017-11-20

Total Pages: 1009

ISBN-13: 1501516086

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), funded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union. Current grammatical knowledge about particular sign languages is fragmentary and of varying reliability, and it appears scattered in scientific publications where the description is often intertwined with the analysis. In general, comprehensive grammars are a rarity. The SignGram Blueprint is an innovative tool for the grammar writer: a full-fledged guide to describing all components of the grammars of sign languages in a thorough and systematic way, and with the highest scientific standards. The work builds on the existing knowledge in Descriptive Linguistics, but also on the insights from Theoretical Linguistics. It consists of two main parts running in parallel: the Checklist with all the grammatical features and phenomena the grammar writer can address, and the accompanying Manual with the relevant background information (definitions, methodological caveats, representative examples, tests, pointers to elicitation materials and bibliographical references). The areas covered are Phonology, Morphology, Lexicon, Syntax and Meaning. The Manual is endowed with hyperlinks that connect information across the work and with a pop-up glossary. The SignGram Blueprint will be a landmark for the description of sign language grammars in terms of quality and quantity.

The Routledge Handbook of Theoretical and Experimental Sign Language Research
The Routledge Handbook of Theoretical and Experimental Sign Language Research

Author: Josep Quer

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-03-11

Total Pages: 853

ISBN-13: 1317624270

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Routledge Handbook of Theoretical and Experimental Sign Language Research bridges the divide between theoretical and experimental approaches to provide an up-to-date survey of key topics in sign language research. With 29 chapters written by leading and emerging scholars from around the world, this Handbook covers the following key areas: On the theoretical side, all crucial aspects of sign language grammar studied within formal frameworks such as Generative Grammar; On the experimental side, theoretical accounts are supplemented by experimental evidence gained in psycho- and neurolinguistic studies; On the descriptive side, the main phenomena addressed in the reviewed scholarship are summarized in a way that is accessible to readers without previous knowledge of sign languages. Each chapter features an introduction, an overview of existing research, and a critical assessment of hypotheses and findings. The Routledge Handbook of Theoretical and Experimental Sign Language Research is key reading for all advanced students and researchers working at the intersection of sign language research, linguistics, psycholinguistics, and neurolinguistics.

A Matter of Complexity
A Matter of Complexity

Author: Roland Pfau

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2016-03-07

Total Pages: 243

ISBN-13: 1501503014

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Since natural languages exist in two different modalities – the visual-gestural modality of sign languages and the auditory-oral modality of spoken languages – it is obvious that all fields of research in modern linguistics will benefit from research on sign languages. Although previous studies have provided important insights into a wide range of phenomena of sign languages, there are still many aspects of sign languages that have not yet been investigated thoroughly. The structure of subordinated clauses is a case in point. The study of these complex syntactic structures in the visual-gestural modality adds to our understanding of linguistic variation in the domain of subordination. Moreover, it offers new empirical and theoretical evidence concerning possible structures and functions of subordination in natural languages. And last but not least, it answers the question to what extent the corresponding morphosyntactic and prosodic strategies depend on the modality of articulation and perception. This volume represents the first collection of papers by leading experts in the field investigating topics that go beyond the analysis of simple clauses. It thus contributes in innovative ways to recent debates about syntax, prosody, semantics, discourse structure, and information structure and their complex interrelation.

Our Lives – Our Stories: Life Experiences of Elderly Deaf People
Our Lives – Our Stories: Life Experiences of Elderly Deaf People

Author: Roland Pfau

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2021-01-18

Total Pages: 427

ISBN-13: 3110701901

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Sign languages are non-written languages. Given that the use of digital media and video recordings in documenting sign languages started only some 30 years ago, the life stories of Deaf elderly signers born in the 1930s-1940s have – except for a few scattered fragments in film – not been documented and are therefore under serious threat of being lost. The chapters compiled in this volume document important aspects of past and present experiences of elderly Deaf signers across Europe, as well as in Israel and the United States. Issues addressed include (i) historical events and how they were experienced by Deaf people, (ii) issues of identity and independence, (iii) aspects of language change, (iv) experiences of suppression and discrimination. The stories shared by elderly signers reveal intriguing, yet hidden, aspects of Deaf life. On the negative side, these include experiences of the Deaf in Nazi Germany and occupied countries and harsh practices in educational settings, to name a few. On the positive side, there are stories of resilience and vivid memories of school years and social and professional life. In this way, the volume contributes in a significant way to the preservation of the cultural and linguistic heritage of Deaf communities and sheds light on lesser known aspects against an otherwise familiar background. This publication has been made possible within the SIGN-HUB project, which has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

Word-Formation
Word-Formation

Author: Peter O. Müller

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2015-09-14

Total Pages: 838

ISBN-13: 3110375737

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This handbook comprises an in-depth presentation of the state of the art in word-formation. The five volumes contain 207 articles written by leading international scholars. The XVI chapters of the handbook provide the reader, in both general articles and individual studies, with a wide variety of perspectives: word-formation as a linguistic discipline (history of science, theoretical concepts), units and processes in word-formation, rules and restrictions, semantics and pragmatics, foreign word-formation, language planning and purism, historical word-formation, word-formation in language acquisition and aphasia, word-formation and language use, tools in word-formation research. The final chapter comprises 74 portraits of word-formation in the individual languages of Europe and offers an innovative perspective. These portraits afford the first overview of this kind and will prove useful for future typological research. This handbook will provide an essential reference for both advanced students and researchers in word-formation and related fields within linguistics.

The clausal syntax of German Sign Language
The clausal syntax of German Sign Language

Author: Fabian Bross

Publisher: Language Science Press

Published: 2020

Total Pages: 349

ISBN-13: 396110218X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book presents a hypothesis-based description of the clausal structure of German Sign Language (DGS). The structure of the book is based on the three clausal layers CP, IP/TP, and VoiceP. The main hypothesis is that scopal height is expressed iconically in sign languages: the higher the scope of an operator, the higher the articulator used for its expression. The book was written with two audiences in mind: On the one hand it addresses linguists interested in sign languages and on the other hand it addresses cartographers.

Multimodal Im/politeness
Multimodal Im/politeness

Author: Andreas H. Jucker

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2023-02-21

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 9027254451

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Politeness and impoliteness are not just expressed by words. People communicate polite and impolite attitudes towards each other through their intonation, tone of voice, their facial expressions, their gestures, the positioning of their bodies towards each other, and so on. This volume brings together eleven empirical studies that investigate these various modalities of im/politeness across signed, spoken and written languages, plus a detailed introductory chapter that establishes a framework for the multimodal investigation of im/politeness. The papers cover a range of languages and cultures, including Swiss German Sign Language, Catalan Sign Language, English (as a native language and as a lingua franca), Korean, Catalan, Persian, Japanese and Spanish. Using a range of data sources and state-of-the art methodologies, the papers reveal that these multimodal features are essential aspects of im/politeness across different languages, cultures and modes of interaction. Put together, the findings from these studies lay the groundwork for a new understanding of im/politeness which is fundamentally multimodal.