Annotation In this book, an Australian Aboriginal sign language used by Indigenous people in the North East Arnhem Land (Northern Territory) is described on the level of spatial grammar. Topics discussed range from properties of individual signs to structure of interrogative and negative sentences. The main interest is the manifestation of signing space - the articulatory space surrounding the signers - for grammatical purposes in Yolngu Sign Language.
Access
Open Access EbpS
Contents
Pt. I Introduction -- 1.Introduction -- 1.1.Research aims and objectives -- 1.2.Outline of the book -- 2.Sign language types -- 2.1.Deaf community sign languages -- 2.2.Emerging sign languages -- 2.3.Village sign languages -- 2.3.1.Socioeconomic and demographic settings -- 2.3.2.Social homogeneity -- 2.3.3.(Socio-)Linguistic context -- 2.3.4.Degree of endangerment -- 2.4.Alternate sign languages -- 2.4.1.Sawmill Sign Language -- 2.4.2.Monastic sign languages -- 2.4.3.Plains Indian Sign Language -- 2.4.4.Keresan Pueblo Indian Sign Language -- 2.4.5.Australian Aboriginal sign languages -- 2.5.Shared sign languages -- 2.6.Summary -- pt. II Sociolinguistic Background & Methodology -- 3.Cultural and sociolinguistic context -- 3.1.Previous studies -- 3.2.Historic & demographic background -- 3.3.Cultural background -- 3.4.Linguistic context -- 3.5.The use of YSL in Yolngu communities -- 3.5.1.Communication with deaf Yolngu -- 3.5.2.Interaction over distance -- 3.5.3.Further aspects of YSL origin and use -- 4.Data collection -- 4.1.Fieldwork -- 4.1.1.Fieldwork sites -- 4.1.2.Cultural issue -- 4.2.Stimulus materials -- 4.2.1.Spontaneous signing -- 4.2.2.Elicited signing -- 4.2.2.1.Visual materials -- 4.2.2.2.Questionnaires and games -- 4.2.2.3.Translation from English and Djambarrpuynu -- 4.3.Participants -- 4.4.Data annotation -- pt. III Selected Aspects of YSL Grammar -- 5.Phonological aspects -- 5.1.Handshapes -- 5.1.1.Basic handshapes -- 5.1.1.1.Token frequency -- 5.1.1.2.Type frequency -- 5.1.1.3.Non-dominant hand frequency -- 5.1.2.Marginal handshapes -- 5.2.Sign types: preference for one-handedness -- 5.3.Nonmanual markers -- 5.3.1.Mouth gestures -- 5.3.2.Mouthings -- 5.3.3.Head movements -- 5.3.3.1.Sleep vs. Exist -- 5.3.3.2.Baynu vs. Yaka -- 5.4.Summary -- 6.Syntactic aspects -- 6.1.Negation -- 6.1.1.Negation in Djambarrpuynu -- 6.1.2.Negation in YSL -- 6.1.3.Summary -- 6.2.Interrogatives -- 6.2.1.Content questions -- 6.2.1.1.Question word paradigm -- 6.2.1.2.Syntactic position of question signs -- 6.2.2.Polar questions -- 6.2.3.Nonmanual marking -- 6.2.4.Summary -- pt. IV Use of Space -- 7.The size of signing space -- 8.Pronominal reference -- 8.1.Pronouns in spoken languages -- 8.2.Pronouns in sign languages -- 8.2.1.Metaphorical pointing -- 8.2.2.Cross-linguistic variation in metaphorical pointing -- 8.3.Pronouns in Djambarrpuynu -- 8.4.Pronouns in YSL -- 8.4.1.Person -- 8.4.2.Number -- 8.4.3.Clusivity -- 8.4.4.Case -- 8.4.5.Summary & comparison to NCDSLs -- 8.4.6.Pointing to a house: the use of metonymic pointing in YSL -- 8.5.Summary -- 9.Verb directionality -- 9.1.Verb agreement in spoken languages -- 9.2.Verb directionality in sign languages -- 9.2.1.Sign language verb classes -- 9.2.2.Disagreements on agreement -- 9.3.Verb directionality in YSL -- 9.3.1.YSL verb classes: plain vs. non-plain -- 9.3.1.1.Frequency of spatial modification in non-plain verbs -- 9.3.1.2.Directional verbs -- 9.3.1.3.Absence of number marking -- 9.3.1.4.Optional object or location marking on YSL verbs -- 9.4.Constituent order in transitive clauses -- 9.4.1.YSL constituent order -- 9.4.2.Djambarrpuynu constituent order -- 9.4.3.Disscussion -- 9.5.Summary -- 10.Expression of motion -- 10.1.Classifiers in spoken languages -- 10.2.Classifiers in sign languages -- 10.2.1.Entity classifiers -- 10.2.2.Handling classifiers -- 10.3.Expression of motion in YSL -- 10.3.1.YSL Directionals -- 10.3.2.YSL Classifiers -- 10.3.2.1.Entity classifiers in YSL -- 10.3.2.1.1.The handshape -- 10.3.2.1.2.The handshape -- 10.3.2.1.3.The handshape -- 10.3.2.2.Handling classifiers in YSL -- 10.4.Summary -- 11.Expression of size and shape -- 11.1.Size and Shape Specifiers in sign languages -- 11.2.Size and Shape Specifiers in YSL -- 11.3.Summary -- pt. V Discussion & Conclusion -- 12.YSL in cross-linguistic perspective -- 12.1.The use of space in shared sign languages -- 12.1.1.The lack of metaphorical pointing -- 12.1.2.Limited use of spatial modification in transitive verbs -- 12.1.3.Restricted use of entity classifiers -- 12.2.Language-external factors and sign language structure -- 12.2.1.Age of language -- 12.2.2.Frame of reference -- 12.2.3.Size of community and context-dependency -- 12.2.4.Proportion of hearing signers -- 13.Concluding remarks.
