Sign Languages of the World: A Comparative Handbook (De Gruyter Handbook)

Although a number of edited collections deal with either the languages of the world or the languages of particular regions or genetic families, only a few cover sign languages or even include a substantial amount of information on them. This handbook provides information on some 38 sign languages, including basic facts about each of the languages, structural aspects, history and culture of the Deaf communities, and history of research. This information will be of interest not just to general audiences, including those who are deaf, but also to linguists and students of linguistics. By providing information on sign languages in a manner accessible to a less specialist audience, this volume fills an important gap in the literature. "Sign Languages of the World is a one-of-a-kind handbook covering 38 of the world's deaf sign languages and auxiliary sign languages. Each sign language has a dedicated chapter, written by experts for the volume. The book includes contributions from both deaf and hearing scholars"--Provided by publisher Sign Language; Deaf history; Deaf Education; Linguistic Typology