Understanding Spanish Sign Language: Key Features and Grammar

Alexander Graham Bell and the Tipping Alphabet

Alexander Graham Bell utilized a manual alphabet known as the Tipping Alphabet, which can also be found in Dalgarno's work (1680) and was cited by Fortich (1987). This alphabet identified letters using internal areas of the hand. A glove with letters written on it could also be used.

Positive Recruitment

Individuals experiencing positive recruitment go from not hearing a sound to experiencing discomfort. Their auditory perception does not increase proportionally with the stimulus, as described by the Weber-Fechner Law. They begin to hear more intensely than usual, and the perceived intensity increases disproportionately, reaching the threshold sooner than a healthy ear. This phenomenon is associated with sensorineural hearing loss, also known as hearing loss of perception.

Classifiers in Sign Language

There are at least two types of classifiers in sign language:

• Classifiers that use a particular hand configuration to represent a noun and can indicate its location and actions.
• Classifiers that illustrate certain physical features of a noun and indicate its location in space.

Classifiers can represent nouns, numbers, and pronouns. Some function as descriptions, while others indicate the spatial location of a person or thing, show how an action is performed, or describe characteristics of objects or persons. They can be singular or plural. Plural forms can be created in multiple ways, often indicating, for example, whether people or things are aligned or scattered in an area. Classifiers are used in many signs and can be used creatively to express a variety of meanings.

Spanish Sign Language (LSE)

LSE (Lengua de Señas Española) is a gestural language used primarily by Deaf individuals in Spain and those who interact with them. All languages are formed by a series of words or symbols that represent something. These words or symbols are organized into a system. In spoken language, sounds (phonemes) are the basic building blocks. In LSE, the basic building blocks, known as cheremes, are:

1. The configuration of the hand(s) while making the sign.
2. The point in space where the hand(s) make the sign.
3. The movement made for the sign.
4. The orientation of the palm of the hand during the sign.
5. Non-manual components, which can include facial expressions or movements of the lips, head, or trunk, performed in parallel with the sign.

Every sign has a location in space, a specific hand configuration, a particular movement, a palm orientation, and specific non-manual components. The combination of these parameters determines a sign with a specific meaning.

Arbitrary and Iconic Signs

The terms "arbitrary" and "iconic" describe the relationship between the form of a sign (signifier) and its meaning.

Grammatical Mechanisms in LSE

Grammar in LSE is based on:

• The use of space.
• The modification of the movement with which the sign is produced.
• The production of non-manual movements.

Other mechanisms include pronominalization rules and word order in a sentence, which help to distinguish the subject and object of the sentence.

Creating New Signs

New signs can be created through:

• Composition (e.g., combining signs for "for" and "fall").
• Modification of an existing sign (e.g., verb-noun relationship, such as "window").
• Dactylology (fingerspelling).
• Experiences, movement, and variations by definition.

Signs can also be adapted for pronunciation.