Japanese Sign Language

Spoken in

• Sign Language Japanese sign languages Japanese Sign Language ( JSL )

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Sgn

Jsl

The Japanese sign language (English Japanese Sign Language, in short: JSL Japanese日本 手 话, Nihon Shuwa ) is the official sign language in Japan. In addition to her two more exist, on the one hand the Pidgin Signed Japanese, which is the Japanese version of the international sign language, and on the other the Manually Signed Japanese, which is comparable to the spoken message accompanying gestures (LBG ).

• 2.1 finger alphabet
• 2.2 grammar

Genesis

There is very little known about the Deaf Culture of Japan before the Edo period (1603-1868 ). Is Narrated that were sent under the second last Shogun, Tokugawa Iemochi, 1862 messengers to Europe, visited the schools for the deaf. However, a school for the deaf was established until 1878, in the Meiji period, in Kyoto.

Until 1948 it had been denied the Japanese Deaf to attend a mainstream school to get basic education or even to learn the Japanese sign language.

In the second half of the 20th century, a rethink was held in Japan. It departed from the view that deaf people are just, who can not hear, and took the position that the deaf are people who have mastered the Japanese sign language. But was not granted to the Japanese deaf that JSL is a separate language.

Although the Japanese Gehörlosenverband achieved inter alia through perseverance and patience more and more acceptance and dissemination of Japanese sign language in the population of Japan, but the sign language is still not fully accepted and is, unlike in Germany, does not constitute own language

Overview of Japanese Sign Language Institutes

The slow acceptance of sign language in Japanese culture means that more and more institutions arise that train interpreters and non- deaf people the opportunity to learn sign language.

In 2006 was adopted by the Cabinet Abe a new law that inspired the governments of the individual prefectures to increase the number of sign language interpreters.

The structure of the Japanese Sign Language

Finger alphabet

The Japanese sign language, called in everyday use Shuwa (手 话), includes a private finger alphabet (指 文字, shimonji ) and one for international words.

The German finger alphabet

The finger alphabets are used, among other surnames, unusual or foreign words.

For more common words, there are different gestures.

Gesture for " bicycle "

Gesture for " always run "

Gesture for " inside / inside "

Grammar

The grammatical structure of sign language is very influenced by the Japanese spoken language and therefore their very similar. Unlike the German Sign Language ( DGS ) is available from the Japanese sign language different cases, articles and verbs, which can be conjugate. Both sign languages ​​, ie German as well as the Japanese, are not purely manual languages ​​, that is only spoken with her hands. A voiceless or voiced say the words (口 话) is needed, since the same hand gestures have different meanings. Also an active body language (身振り) is necessary because it determined by the record type: declarative sentence, interrogative sentence or imperative form of a sentence.

The current status of the Japanese Sign Language in Japan

The Japanese sign language is still not entirely accepted in Japan, although many messages will be simultaneously held in Japanese sign language and spoken language and entertainment media with Japanese sign language exist (eg, Babel, The Call 3 - Final). Because this increased the public interest in the Japanese Sign Language, and led to an increase in private courses on sign language, the Japanese sign language was not taught in most Japanese schools for the deaf in 2002. The classes are held there by using lipreading and spoken language, or the international sign language is taught.

Even after the abolition of the state under the direction of prohibition, the Japanese sign language is not taught according to official figures.

Sources

• Chokaku Shogaisha Rikai no Tame, a Japanese side to explain the situation of deaf school children in Japan. Retrieved on 29 November 2010.
• Many Ways to be Deaf: International Variation in Deaf Communities, pp. 211 ff, an excerpt from the article by Karen Nakamura. Retrieved on 29 November 2010.
• Official homepage of the JASLI ( Japanese). Retrieved on 29 November 2010.