Nouns and Verbs

The lexicalised signs that represent nouns and verbs can be modified using a variety of tools that can change their conveyed meanings.  Modifying nouns and verbs is an important aspect of sign language because they can convey different or emphasised meanings that can be applied to different facets of Auslan, such as storytelling. Nouns A …

Constructed Action

Constructed Action adds complexity but also increases the ease of conveying the desired meaning in storytelling.  It is used to add layers and imagery to the narrative as the signer can take on different characters, objects, animals and also the role of the narrator to create a vivid contextual position (Johnston & Schembri, 2007). The …

Depicting Signs

A major part of Auslan is the importance of visual communication to tell a story, this relies on the use of depicting signs (DS).  However, the depicting signs need to be specific and relevant to what is being represented so that they can be easily understood.  There are three main handshapes that depicting signs consists …

Lexicalised Signs

Although fingerspelling is an incredibly useful way to convey meaning for beginners and for terms that do not yet have a specific sign, it is also very stagnant and manual.  The beauty and attraction of Auslan is that it is a visual language with specific nuances and unique aspects such as the strong use of …

Basic Introduction

For those interested in learning sign language or for those that come across signers in their everyday life, it is important to know how to introduce yourself and how to have a basic conversation. Name Sign names are very significant in the deaf community and can only be granted by a Deaf or hard of …

Etiquette

These social protocols demonstrate how to show respect and appreciation for the Deaf community but also need to be pursued for practical reasons.  For instance, a Deaf person cannot “hear” what you are saying if they cannot see your lips or your hands when signing, therefore, eye contact is crucial to conversational use. Gaining Attention …

Sentence Structure

English has a very strict grammatical structure that is utilised.  Radford (2010) discusses that the basic sentence structure is typically subject-verb-object, such as the example "the dog ate a biscuit", where adverbs and adjectives can be added additionally. Auslan differs from the English language in this sense as it places the most important part of …

Fingerspelling and Numbers

Fingerspelling translates the English alphabet into Auslan, where designated handshapes can be used to spell out words where signs do not yet exist or when they are unknown to the signer or responder (Rose, 2013). Even though fingerspelling is a very manual aspect of sign language, it is incredibly beneficial for novice signers as approximately …

Introduction & Brief History

Contrary to popular belief, there is not one universal sign language.  Australian Sign Language (Auslan) is heavily influenced by British Sign Language (BSL), Irish Sign Language (ISL) and Scottish Sign Language (SSL) due to the introduction of convicts and settlers to Australia in the 1800s ("Auslan," 2012), who established schools around the country, however, through …