Polish Sign Language
Encyclopedia
Polish Sign Language is the language of the Deaf community in Poland
. Its lexicon
and grammar
are distinct from the Polish language
, although there is a manually coded
version of Polish known as System Językowo-Migowy (SJM, or Signed Polish), which is often used by interpreters on television and by teachers in schools.
Polish Sign Language uses a one-handed manual alphabet
based on the alphabet used in Old French Sign Language
. However, the language itself derives from German Sign Language
.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Its lexicon
Lexicon
In linguistics, the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, including its words and expressions. A lexicon is also a synonym of the word thesaurus. More formally, it is a language's inventory of lexemes. Coined in English 1603, the word "lexicon" derives from the Greek "λεξικόν" , neut...
and grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
are distinct from the Polish language
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, although there is a manually coded
Manually Coded Language
Manually coded languages are representations of spoken languages in a gestural-visual form; that is, "sign language" versions of spoken languages...
version of Polish known as System Językowo-Migowy (SJM, or Signed Polish), which is often used by interpreters on television and by teachers in schools.
Manual alphabet
Polish manual alphabet
The Polish manual alphabet is a single-handed manual alphabet used in Polish Sign Language....
based on the alphabet used in Old French Sign Language
Old French Sign Language
Old French Sign Language is a term that loosely describes the language of the deaf community in 18th century Paris at the time of the establishment of the first deaf schools...
. However, the language itself derives from German Sign Language
German Sign Language
German Sign Language or Deutsche Gebärdensprache is the sign language of the Deaf community in Germany. It is often abbreviated as DGS. It is unclear how many use German Sign Language as their main language; Gallaudet University estimated 50,000 in 1986.The language has evolved through use in deaf...
.
External links
Polish manual alphabet- Polish Association of the Deaf official website History of Polish Sign Language