The Typology of Handshape: Gesture, Homesign, and Sign Language

手形的类型学：手势、手语和手语

• 批准号: 1227908
• 负责人: Diane Brentari
• 金额: $ 55万
• 依托单位: University of Chicago
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-09-15 至 2020-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1227908&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Typology; Handshape; Gesture; Homesign; Sign

This research will answer two related questions concerning differences and similaarities across signed languages. Both are addressed by analyzing the patterns of the handshapes produced in gesture, homesign and sign languages. First, are some language-specific differences in sign languages attributable to typological class (rather than to random variation or historical relatedness)? The typological distinction involves two types of iconicity used in handshape (hand-as-object vs. hand-as-hand) and how they are distributed throughout the grammar -- in nouns, verbs, and productive morphology. The study will include signers from four countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, and Italy. Typology has been an important tool in predicting variation among spoken languages, and typology is hypothesized to have the same explanatory power in signed languages. The second question to be addressed is: How do differences among sign languages emerge? Are the patterns of iconicity in handshape shared by a particular sign language and the surrounding culturally specific gestures used by hearing people? Or do handshape patterns emerge only when gesture is used as the primary means of communication (homesign and sign language)? Gesturers, homesigners, and signers from Nicaragua will be involved in answering this question, along with a control group of gesturers from each of the countries mentioned above. It is expected that gesture systems will pattern differently with respect to sign languages and homesign, which are expected to behave more similarly to one another. If confirmed, this will be evidence that sign language patterns are not continuous with those of the surrounding gestural patterns that hearing people use, but rather stem from continued use of gesture as the sole means of communication. This will shed light on the "nature" vs. "nurture" question. Since it is no longer possible to trace the change from "non-language" to "language" in speech, this work contributes to our understanding of the emergence of language.In addition to providing a better understanding of the properties of signed languages and the factors that influence variation among them, this project will enable the development of improved methods for assessing typical and atypical SL development. The project will also provide valuable training opportunities for undergraduate students, and will enable the creation of new, international scientific collaborations.

这项研究将回答有关手语之间差异和相似性的两个相关问题。通过分析手势、手语和手语中产生的手形模式来解决这两个问题。首先，手语中某些语言特定的差异是否可归因于类型类别（而不是随机变化或历史相关性）？ 类型学上的区别涉及手形中使用的两种象似性（手作为物体与手作为手）以及它们在整个语法中的分布方式——名词、动词和生产形态。 该研究将包括来自四个国家的签署者：美国、英国、香港和意大利。类型学一直是预测口语差异的重要工具，并且假设类型学对手语具有相同的解释力。要解决的第二个问题是：手语之间的差异是如何出现的？ 特定手语和听力正常的人所使用的周围文化特定手势是否具有相似的手形模式？ 或者只有当手势被用作主要的交流手段（手语和手语）时，手形图案才会出现？来自尼加拉瓜的手势者、家庭签名者和签名者以及来自上述每个国家的手势者对照组将参与回答这个问题。预计手势系统将在手语和手语方面表现出不同的模式，而手语和手语的行为预计会更加相似。 如果得到证实，这将证明手语模式与听力正常的人使用的周围手势模式并不连续，而是源于继续使用手势作为唯一的交流手段。这将阐明“先天”与“后天”的问题。 由于不再可能追踪言语中从“非语言”到“语言”的变化，这项工作有助于我们理解语言的出现。影响它们之间变化的因素，该项目将有助于开发评估典型和非典型 SL 发展的改进方法。该项目还将为本科生提供宝贵的培训机会，并将促成新的国际科学合作。