Which part of the world does sign language originate from as it is a universal language & when did it become official?
201198
Much deserved credit is due the Plains Indians for having developed and perpetuated the Indian sign language. So much credit has been given them in this regard that the language has been commonly known as the sign language of the Plains Indians, by which title, in keeping with general usage, it is referred to on the title page of this work. In as much, however, as investigation has served to indicate that the language has other and more remote origin, the author has made something of a hobby of research along this line and is pleased to freely offer his findings, for such conclusion as more capable students may determine.\n\nThere are also many other disciplines of sign language that reside in different areas of the globe.  The origin of modern ASL is ultimately tied to the confluence of many events and circumstances, including historical attempts at deaf education; possibly the sign used by the indigenous nations of North America; the unique situation present on a small island in Massachusetts; the attempts of a father to enlist a local minister to help educate his deaf daughter; and in no small part the ingenuity and genius of people (in this case deaf people) for language itself.
128060
Language is, basically, a form of communication that takes several forms. It is used verbally, when speaking, written, when sending messages or letters or communicating information in books, newspapers etc, and in sign language, commonly known as body language. When we talk to each other verbally we only remember about 7% of what is said. 55% of direct personal communication comes from body language (i.e. Non-verbal communication) and 38% from attitude. Each language has evolved from primeval grunting that developed into common recogniseable sounds that were then put together to form words and sentences.\n\nA rather quaint biblical explanation of different languages is contained in the Bible's Old Testament story of the Tower of Babel found in Genesis, chapter 2 verses 1 - 9.\n\nThe people tried to build a tower that would reach God who, as we all know, is supposed to be everywhere, so the building of a tower was not necessary and an example of man's ignorance and stupidity. thus God (Jehovah) caused the builders to speak different languages so that they were incomprehensible to each other and forced to abandon the work. This attempts to account for the diversification of language as the builders were supposed to be scattered about the world and thus explain that people in different countries speak separate languages. This concept still works today with not only language differences that occur when a country's border is crossed, but also in different areas of the same country with regional dialects. This difference spawned the word 'Babble' to describe someone speaking unintelligably.\n\nAs Moses is credited with writing the first five books of the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy and Numbers, collectively known as the Pentateuch) it may be assumed that the story alludes to the Babylonian ziggurats, or pyramids, which were, to Moses, examples of Gentile pride.
95191
Kannada or Canarese, the official language of the southern Indian state of Karnataka. Kannada is a Dravidian language spoken by about 44 million people in the Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and MaharashtraKannada alphabet   \nOrigin\nThe Kannada alphabet developed from the Kadamba and Cālukya scripts, descendents of Brahmi which were used between the 5th and 7th centuries AD. These scripts developed into the Old Kannada script, which by about 1500 had morphed into the Kannada and Telugu scripts. Under the influence of Christian missionary organizations, Kannada and Telugu scripts were standardized at the beginning of the 19th century. Kannada is a alphasyllabary in which all consonants have an inherent vowel. Other vowels are indicated with diacritics, which can appear above, below, before or after the consonants. \nWhen they appear the the beginning of a syllable, vowels are written as independent letters. \nWhen consonants appear together without intervening vowels, the second consonant is written as a special conjunt symbol, usually below the first.
491376
Learning to sign or studying American Sign Language (ASL) can be very interesting ot aanyone whether they are hearing or deaf.  \n\nSign can allow people who do not have the facility for spoken language to communicate fluently and quickly where writing or other non-verbal communication can be inconvenient.  The speach disability could be from birth, due to accident or stroke or illness, temporary or permanent.\n\nWithin the deaf community, ASL, like any other spoken language, has an impact on the culture of those who are fluent users, and ASL is evolving and changing as the "deaf culture" develops and changes with new words and ideas.  \n\nWith computers and words processig speach aids now available, keyboards are helping more people communicate without relying on knowledge of sign -- yet we all still use gestures and informal signing when trying to communicate accros language barriers.\n\nChildren in special education can sometimes use signing as a temporary form of communication until theyare able to develop speach or the ability to use a keyboard - or may rely on signing completely if they are severly disabled.\n\nSpecial education teachers and classroom aids study ASL to better teach and understand their students.
335656
there is none.  english is the official language in some states, though, and other states have a non-english language as the official one. for example, hawaiian is the official language of hawaii.
615609
Try\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Hemisphere\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Hemisphere\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Hemisphere\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Hemisphere\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americas\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia\n\nActually, you can only divide the world into two hemispheres, usually either Northern and Soouthern, or Eastern and Western, so I can't give you detailed info on which country is situated in which hemisphere, but the links I gave you states the name of countries at each continent. Hope it helped!
4143
I think it depends on your reason for learning sign language.  You may find some cheap classes offered through you community.  A lot of community colleges may offer sign language.  If you happen to live near a school for the deaf you probably could get classes there.  Also if you live in a large city check for Community Services for the Deaf.  Usually large cities have non-profit organizations that will offer classes to the public.
250560
Modern human languages began life in primate communication systems, but complex language began life about 100,000 years ago with the emergence of the first fully modern humans in Africa.  By the time of the first writing about 5000 years ago, languages were already complex structures.  After the development of writing certain very complex structures that are only found in written language evolved, but these structures are not necessary for communication, they only have stylistic functions not needed in oral communication.\n\nIf you want a VERY good book on the subject, look for "The Unfolding of Language:  An evolutionary tour of mankind's greatest invention" by Guy Deutscher (2005, Metropolitan Books).  It is so good I'm going to start assigning it as required reading in my Languages of the World class.
255956
There are many sign languages.  Users of different sign languages cannot understand each other, just as users of different spoken languages cannot understand each other.\n\nYour question suggests you think there might be sign language equivalents of spoken languages, i.e. Arabic sign language is used in places where people speak Arabic.  This is not true because sign languages are created and used by themselves; they are not signed versions of spoken languages.  Nicaraguan Sign Language, for example, was created entirely by deaf children who lived in the same school in Nicaragua; it is not a signed version of Spanish.  American Sign Language also is not a signed version of English -- it has its own syntax and is very different from English in some respects.  I hope this clears that up.\n\n(Actually, there is a signing system called Signed English that IS a signed version of English but it's not considered a language.)
595586
Belgium.\n"as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly"
351030
I began learning American Sign Language my sophomore year in high school. My friend was having a surgery that would either fix his hearing, or make him deaf. It was a wonderful experience, learning the language. Now I use some simple baby signs with my toddler, and it has helped us communicate better.
243617
English!! We are Universal like it or not!!!
562710
I don't know. I guess there is no way for us to know which country signed first because they agreed upon it simultaneously. Unless you want to know by fact, who was the first representative to jot down a signature! Haha, I really don't know. But all I know is that, only Somalia and the United States have not ratified the CRC. Somalia is currently unable to proceed to ratification as it has no recognized government.
5120
I found this answer at the website below....I hope this helps....it certainly suprised me!\n\nLinguists estimate that there are anywhere from 4,000 to more than 10,000 distinct languages still spoken! Many linguists give a figure of 6,000-7,000, more or less following the lead of the reference work: (Ethnologue languages of the world).  The 14th edition came out in November 2000.\n\nHowever, many Sign languages (see entry SIGN LANGUAGES) have been omitted from these counts (the Ethnologue lists 103) — ((see the 2nd link below)).\n\nSo, the actual number of languages is much larger and could even be twice that high! \n\nWOW!\n:)\nPeace
648877
The short answer is that spelling conventions like -our (colour, flavour) and -re (centre, theatre) came from French, which was introduced into England in the Norman Conquest of 1066. After that, French became, in effect, the "official language" of England, and dramatically influenced (and enriched) the English language.\n\nHowever, spelling conventions in Britain and America were not codified until the 18th and 19th centuries. The British chose to keep the French influence, while the Americans, newly independent, chose to drop the "u", as a way of differentiating themselves from the former "mother country." Noah Webster, the dictionary author, had a lot to do with this, though he didn't invent it -- it was already taking place. He just chose to call it "correct."\n\nAs for why non-native English speakers in Europe and elsewhere use British spellings, it's because most countries consider British English the "correct" or "authentic" form of English. In fact, many foreign countries still teach students to speak English with an English accent, which often produces an odd effect.
365048
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_language
284632
Can you access google?\nIf you type in "American Sign Language Alphabet", there are some good charts that appear.\n\nI would upload one here, but I'm not sure if I can put anything but text into this box.\n\nAlso, you can download fingerspelling fonts from the internet, you could use one to make yourself a chart.