Knowra South African Sign Language South African Sign Language South African Sign Language (SASL) is a visual language used by Deaf communities in South Africa. It has its own grammar and regional and social variation.
Sign language : A natural language that uses visual-manual forms, including handshape, movement, location, and facial expression. SASL is one language within the broader family of natural sign languages.
South African Sign Language interpreting : The translation of messages between South African Sign Language and another language by an interpreter. Interpreters make communication across SASL and spoken or written languages possible in public settings.
History of South African Sign Language : The development of South African Sign Language through Deaf communities, schools, and language contact. This history explains how SASL developed across distinct regions and institutions.
Manually coded English : A system that represents spoken or written English through signs, often following English grammar. SASL has its own grammar and is not simply English rendered with the hands.
Sign language linguistics : The study of the phonology, morphology, syntax, and use of sign languages. Its methods describe SASL without treating it as signed spoken Afrikaans or English.
Deaf education in South Africa : The education of Deaf learners within South Africa’s varied schooling and language contexts. The language used for instruction directly affects Deaf learners’ access to education.
Deaf schools in South Africa : Schools serving Deaf learners in South Africa, with varied histories, languages, and educational approaches. Residential and local schools helped shape networks of SASL use and variation.
Signed Exact English : A manually coded system designed to represent English words and grammatical structures with signs. It contrasts with SASL’s independent linguistic structure rather than encoding English word for word.
Sign language phonology : The study of contrastive units and patterns in sign languages, including handshape, movement, and location. These visual parameters distinguish signs in SASL just as sound contrasts distinguish spoken words.
Language policy in South Africa : The laws and public decisions governing language status, use, and access in South Africa. Policy determines how SASL is recognized and provided for in public institutions.
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