Today is the International Day of Sign Languages. While most people are aware that sign language (visual-manual coded language) exists, many are under the impression that “sign language” is a universal language. It is estimated that there are over 200 individual sign languages in the world. Many of these include dialects / regional differences. Sign languages are considered by linguists to be natural languages, in that they have emerged and developed organically. Sign language is not the same as body language, or miming.
The primary sign language in Australia is Auslan.
Sign Language and Neurodivergence
Many neurodivergent people use sign languages to receive information, to communicate their own thoughts and feelings, and to support other means of communication. ND people who might use sign language include people:
- Experiencing situational mutism
- Running low on spoons
- With speech and language difficulties such as apraxia of speech
- With processing differences
- With language delays
- With learning disabilities
- With anxiety
- Who are neurodivergent and D/deaf or have a hearing difference
Auslan
Auslan’s grammar and vocabulary is not the same as English. Like any language, it evolves, modernised, and integrates signs from other sign languages. Auslan, NZSL (New Zealand Sign Language), and BSL (British Sign Language) fall under the BANZSL umbrella. While they are considered independent languages, they share many commonalities including their alphabet. The vast majority of Auslan is two-handed whereas ASL (American Sign Language), for example, uses one hand for fingerspelling (which makes up around a quarter of its vocabulary) and many signs.
A sentence such as “I drank a delicious chocolate milkshake yesterday,” in English, would – in Auslan’s correct grammar – be signed as, “Milkshake chocolate delicious yesterday I drank.” It could also be signed as, “Chocolate milkshake I drank yesterday delicious.” It is all about giving a clear picture first: what are you talking about? (A chocolate milkshake). Followed by: what about it? (I drank it, it happened yesterday, it was delicious… though the order of these isn’t set in stone).
Not Just Hand Shapes
Correctly used Auslan is not just about hand signs and syntax. Body language, position, facial expression, and vocabulary choices are also crucial in accurately communicating using Auslan.
Indigenous Sign Language in Australia
There are at least 55 known sign languages in Aboriginal communities across Australia, with some signs dating back over 65,000 years. While a small number of these developed in response to the need for deaf Indigenous people to communicate, most exist due to speech taboos (cultural expectations for certain family members, or people in particular circumstances, not to engage verbally). Indigenous sign languages are part of the multi-modal communication system used in many Aboriginal communities, rather than as something related to a lack of hearing. Deaf people, historically, in more traditional Indigenous settings, have been more likely to develop home signs.
Indigenous-specific dialects of Auslan also exist, which are frequently influenced by the local Indigenous sign language.
Baby Sign
Some areas in Australia offer “Baby Sign” classes to developmentally pre-verbal children. While many of these signs are based on Auslan, this is not a precursor to Auslan. Evidence that babies can sign before they can speak is questionable, though it is accepted that teaching your child to sign will not delay spoken language development.
Key Word Sign
Key Word Sign (KWS) is a form of AAC (Alternative and Augmentative Communication), and uses signs to support spoken English. It is not a sign language. Previously known as Makaton, KWS is most commonly used to assist communication with people with learning disabilities, communication difficulties, speech disorders, and language delays, rather than D/deaf people or those with hearing differences. People who benefit from visually assisted communication often adopt KWS, as it provides a visual reinforcement of the spoken words being used.
Almost all KWS signs are taken from Auslan.
Signed Spoken English
SSE (Signed Spoken English) utilises Auslan signs in the typical syntax of spoken English. As there are 38 hand shapes with 28 variants in Auslan – with movement, expression, orientation and location giving additional meaning – and around 200,000 words in spoken English, SSE is quite limiting.
SSE is most commonly used in education settings when staff or students have a basic knowledge of Auslan signs, but are not fluent in the language, and wish to communicate with Deaf students. It is also used by some sing-sign interpreters.1
Difficulties for Auslan users
Around 16,000 people use Auslan, yet there are just over 300 interpreters in the entire country. This makes integration into society, and necessary communication with hearing people (the average GP, for example) very difficult for many Deaf people, and other people who use Auslan as their primary language.
Language often doesn’t develop in Auslan as rapidly as it does in English, meaning that many specific terms don’t have a sign, or have a sign that is considered offensive or politically incorrect. Many common neurodivergencies, and ND traits, for example, do not have Auslan signs and are, instead, fingerspelled. This can make communication around these topics, even with the use of an interpreter, very difficult.
Where To Learn Sign Language?
If you want to learn Auslan, whether that’s for your child’s benefit or for other reasons, there are a number of pathways.
If your child attends speech therapy, your speechie might be able to direct you to local groups.
Most states offer Auslan as a subject in a number of locations via Tafe, as do some community colleges. There are also many private online offerings.
To learn specific signs to use alongside previous Auslan knowledge, or to utilise in KWS, etc, visit: https://auslan.org.au/
- If you’d like to see some great examples of Auslan interpretation of music, look up Auslan Stage Left; specifically Mickey Webb (legend!). ↩︎