History of Sign Language

Sign language, a kind of communication that is based on visually transmitted signs has indeed served as bliss for the hearing impaired. Sign language combines manual language, body language, movements of hands and body and facial expressions to convey meaning. Let us look at the history of sign language.

History of Sign Language
In 1620, Juan Pablo Bonet, a Spanish priest known for his work education for the deaf, published a book called, ‘Reduction of letters and art for teaching people to speak’. This literary work established a mode of oral education for the deaf. It brought about a way of using manual alphabet that would enable the deaf and dumb people to communicate.

Who invented the sign language? It was Charles-Michel de Iepee who published his alphabet that was inspired from Bonet’s work on sign language. Do you know when was the first school for the deaf and dumb started? It was founded in 1755 in Paris by Abbe de Iepee. The first permanent school for the deaf was founded in Hartford, Connecticut in 1817.

Since the early years of the development of sign language, finger spellings and distinct finger positions to represent different letters of the alphabet have always been a part of sign language. The origin of the sign language can be traced back to the initial years of the Christian era. The Latin bibles of the 10th century bear illustrations of hand and finger positions conveying meanings of different words. Signs are not always used to represent letters or single words. They are often used to represent ideas. They are rich and complex and should not be mistaken as mere visual representations of the words. Sign languages are based on phonemes, which are built into meaningful units of expression.

Several sign languages are in use today. Deaf communities from different parts of the world communicate differently, through their own versions of sign languages. American Sign Language, abbreviated as ASL, is predominant in the Deaf community of the United States, in parts of Canada and Mexico. Let us look at its history.

History of American Sign Language
Dr. Mason Cogsewell with an intention of communicating with his deaf daughter, Alice, enlisted a local minister to educate her. There were contemporary efforts going on in the United States to devise ways for rendering education to the hearing impaired. Prior to the invention of the ASL, a language known by the name, ‘Martha’s Vineyard Sign Language’ was widely used by the people of Massachusetts. The efforts directed towards providing the deaf with suitable means of communication led to the development of the American Sign Language. The vocabulary of the ASL is pretty similar to that of the French Sign Language. After the establishment of the first public school for the deaf in North America, ASL spread far and wide.

The International sign language is used in the international Deaf events. It is a fully signed language serving as a global communication language for the deaf communities all around the world.