Japanese Sign Language
| Japanese Sign Language | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Japan |
Native speakers | 320,000 (1986)[1] |
Japanese Sign Language family
| |
| Official status | |
| Regulated by | Japanese Federation of the Deaf |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | jsl |
Japanese Sign Language (日本手話, Nihon Shuwa), also known as JSL[2] or NS,[3] is the main sign language in Japan.
History[change | change source]
In 1878, the first school for the deaf was established in Kyoto.
In 1900, the Tokyo School for the Deaf (東京都立ろう学校, Tokyo ro-a gakko) was founded.
In 1948, Deaf children were required to attend school.[4]
In the late-20th century, Japanese sign language began to be recognized.[5]
The Japanese Federation of the Deaf is for those Japanese whose primary language is JSL.[6]
JSL has a friend in the Imperial family. Kiko, Princess Akishino has studied JSL and is a trained sign language interpreter.[7] She also signs in informal Deaf gatherings.[8]
In 2006, the Japanese government amended the "Supporting Independence of People with Disabilities Act." The new language in the law encourages local governments to increase the number and use of JSL interpreters.[9]
Elements of Japanese Sign Language (JSL)[change | change source]
As in other sign languages, JSL (usually called simply 手話 shuwa, "hand talk") consists of words, or signs, and the grammar with which they are put together.
Examples of JSL signs[change | change source]
-
A noun: "bicycle" -
A verb: "to be" -
A Chinese character: "middle" (中, naka, chū) -
A grammatical particle: interrogative sentence ending
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Japanese Sign Language at Ethnologue (16th ed., 2009)
- ↑ JSL is an English acronym. JSL stands for "Japanese Sign Language".
- ↑ NS is a romaji acronym. NS stands for "Nihon Shuwa".
- ↑ Monaghan, Leila Frances. (2003). Many Ways to be Deaf: International Variation in Deaf Communities, p. 211.
- ↑ Nakamura, Karen. (2006). Deaf in Japan: Signing and the Politics of Identity, p. 9, citing Kimura, Harumi and Yasuhiro Ichida. 1995. "Roubunka Sengen" (An Explanation of Deaf Culture), Gendai Shisou, Vol. 23, No. 3, pp. 354-399.
- ↑ Nakamura, Karen. "Resistance and Co‐optation: the Japanese Federation of the Deaf and its Relations with State Power," Social Science Japan Journal (SSJJ) (2002) Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 17-35.
- ↑ Imperial Household Agency. Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess Akishino
- ↑ "Princess Kiko chats with Deaf soccer players in sign language after film show," Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine Deaf Japan News. September 7, 2010.
- ↑ Saruhashi, Junko and Yuko Takeshita. "Ten Linguistic Issues in Japan: The Impact of Globalization," Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
Further reading[change | change source]
- Monaghan, Leila Frances. (2003). Many Ways to be Deaf: International Variation in Deaf Communities. Washington, D.C.: Gallaudet University Press. ISBN 9781563681356; OCLC 248814292
- Nakamura, Karen. (2006). Deaf in Japan: Signing and the Politics of Identity. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801443503; ISBN 9780801473562; OCLC 238810838
Other websites[change | change source]
- Japanese Association of Sign Linguistics (JASL) Archived 2004-09-25 at the Wayback Machine
- 手話教室 (online JSL lessons and dictionary, in Japanese)
- Online JSL dictionaries Archived 2008-09-18 at the Wayback Machine
- Kyoto Prefectural Education Center Website with explanations in English
