Sign languages not only for the deaf.

aware of emptiness

With a POD at any point in the span of human civilization, what if one or more sign languages (language using body and hand gestures) developed to the same importance as a spoken language?

I mean, one or more sign language used by a large population of people (not just the deaf) and having the status of a major language, alongside spoken ones like English, Spanish, Arabic or Chinese.

Also, what would be the social and cultural implications of such a language?
 

Melvin Loh

Well, what about the use of some military sign language which was developed as universal ? Like what you see in movies such as BHD depicting the specops operators communicating with each other in hand signals.
 

Keenir

Banned
aware of emptiness said:
With a POD at any point in the span of human civilization, what if one or more sign languages (language using body and hand gestures) developed to the same importance as a spoken language?
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sign languages do have the same importance.

just ask parents (and friends) of deaf children.
 

Paul Spring

In OTL several forms of sign language were used by various native nations of North America who spoke very different languages as a means of communication. I'm not certain, but I suspect that the same was true in other parts of the world for groups of people speaking different languages who met occasionally but not too often. The problem with taking it any further is that for most people who have "normal" hearing ability, it is easier to express meaning through spoken language when you meet another group of people on a regular basis.
 

aware of emptiness

I mean, could it be possible for a sign language to be developed as to be used as universally as a spoken language, say with millions of speakers among many backgrounds and not just by a certain group (eg. the deaf and their family/friends, prisoners etc.)? One that is an official language, a trade/business language, and one where people can be seen using ubiqutiously on the street.
 

aware of emptiness

Paul Spring said:
In OTL several forms of sign language were used by various native nations of North America who spoke very different languages as a means of communication. I'm not certain, but I suspect that the same was true in other parts of the world for groups of people speaking different languages who met occasionally but not too often. The problem with taking it any further is that for most people who have "normal" hearing ability, it is easier to express meaning through spoken language when you meet another group of people on a regular basis.
Click to expand...

Perhaps could there have developed sign language as a sort of spoken analogue of Chinese "pictograms", where people of different backgrounds can communicate. That could prove to be interesting, a sign language as a trade language or lingua franca.
 

Max Sinister

Banned
I once read about a tribe where everyone "speaks" sign language, so deaf members aren't excluded from society. In some way, it's for the deaf, though...
 
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