if you can speak one language and you know sign-language, are you considered bilingual?
410590
Absolutely, but you are only bilingual if you "speak" American Sign Language (ASL) in this country, because it is recognized as a cultural language with it's own grammar system. If you speak English and know Signed Exact English (SEE) or another sign-to-word system, those are not considered their own cultural language and therefore, you would NOT be bilingual.
187961
A native language is one that you learn first from birth. If English was the first language you spoke, you are a native English speaker.
1080344
English,French,Italian,Spanish,\nGerman,Latin,Japanese, Chinese and others. only speak 3 with fluency\n\nUSA\nUSA\nSchool and on my own
558401
Contrary to some people's beliefs, sign language is not a universal language. Every country has its own sign language, just as it has its own spoken language. In the US, there are 2 primary languages - American Sign Language (ASL), and Signed Exact English (SEE). ASL uses gestures and does not focus on grammar in the same way that one would see in a book. For example (it's hard to describe a visual language in words) if you were talking about your car, one would sign: "my car, blue, 4 doors I drive to store. leave car, go inside." Spoken, it would sound more like, "I drove my blue, 4-door car to the store. I got out of my car and went inside." The focus is on conveying the message, and using a lot of helping words (the, a, an, etc.) is unnecessary and slows the conversation. Despite some of the differences, there is a syntax and grammar of its own used and ASL has been classified to be an independent language in the same way as English, German, or French. SEE uses syntax and grammar to the same degree as spoken English, and follows all the same rules. It also uses somewhat different signs from ASL, despite the similar background. For example, in ASL, there is a sign for "carpet" (meaning "rug"). In SEE, this is a compound word which is very literal in nature. "carpet" is signed in SEE as "car" (like the one you drive) followed immediately by the sign for "pet" (as in, to pet your dog). Just as we have verbal ironies or jokes/puns in Enlish, there are similar types of plays on words (signs) in sign language. Both languages also use the same signs for the alphabet. SEE was introduced during a period where people thought all Deaf people should learn to speak English and needed to learn to read lips. Most Deaf people today speak Pidgin Sign Language, which is essentially a combination or middle ground of ASL and SEE. Within the Deaf community, some people speak primarily SEE, while some speak only ASL. A large percentage of Deaf schools today teach ASL, as it is viewed by many in the Deaf community as a more pure sign language. \nThere is also a college for Deaf people, where all classes are taught in sign language. It is Gallaudet University, named after the father of modern-day sign language.
443085
You think in your primary language, right? I'm learning sign language and sometimes I think in sign.  Its very frustrating when I'm writing things and I can't thing of the English and I want to just write the sign, but I can't.\n\nShort and simple, yes
720753
2 english and afrikaans (i'm from south africa) but have this interesting ability to look at words in different languages (latin esp) and find word that they sound like in eng, and thereby translate them roughly. i can also greet in most western european languages, african native languages, and in hindi
979699
I do research in raising children bilingual. YES, children usually start to speak later when being raised bilingual. They will also mix up the languages for a certain period of time. But continue to raise them that way, they will be fluent in both languages, even though you might get scared at moments.
1075827
There's nothing wrong with learning a language. But, in the USA, you shouldn't have to know Spanish to get a job. And yet, employers want bilingual employees especially in Texas. Many classified ads say "bilingual preferred" which means they only hire bilingual, which isn't right. We shouldn't be pandering to people who can't speak English. It's the responsibility of everyone living in the USA to learn English. Americans can't be expected to learn the language of every immigrant (German, Italian, Chinese, Thai, etc.) who moves here.
876504
reading and sign language why not
401483
i think if you can involve yourself in that language environment ,do it
734815
I'd have to go with everyone else and say Spanish (although, I'm hardly a business person, so I don't know how useful Mandarin would be). However, there is one language that no one else mentioned that I would really like to learn: Sign Language. Other useful languages could be French (If you live in the northeast or New Orleans area) and Italian. One of the nice things about Spanish, Italian, and French is that once you are competent with one of these languages, the other two are much easier to read because they are all Latin based.
1029283
I like to tell people that because I know Spanish as well as English, my world is twice as big. That means I can talk to almost anyone I meet in the Southwest United States, where so many speak both Spanish and English, instead of being limited to just English. Now if only I knew French, I could go to Canada and expand my world by another big percentage. Same with Russian or German or Portuguese or Chinese.
419878
ASL is often offered through local colleges. It is very easy to learn and easy to retain. I learned ASL from 3rd through 8th grade as my school had a large deaf population. I still remember a bulk of the signs years later without any practice.
548505
Everything is relative from your mother tongue. You could say that Spanish is easy for you if you speak Portuguese but it might be not so easy for English speakers. Gaelic is such a small language that is really worth learning just so you can say you speak a rare language. GO FOR IT!!
224813
Sign language, because I like using my hands and I'd like to help those who need an interpritor, and Spanish because that's the second most popular language in the world.
853001
Communication \n... to Word: Considering Modality Constraints in ASL/English Bilingual ... Sign Language (ASL) as a first language and written English as a second language.
128877
"real bilinguals"??? OMG! Anyway, to your question. Anyone who can switch from one language to another quickly can very well be fluent in both, but the ability to switch seamlessly between two shows marked intelligence and a wonderful grasp of concepts since it is very hard to keep the conjugation correct and the idea flow correct to make the end result from sounding non-scensical. Anyone who is bi-ligual and can switch between both in conversation is very smart and should be applauded. \nI'm still pondering your use of the term "Real Bilingual"...