<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; ">SignWriting List<DIV>July 20, 2005</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>The message below from Eyasu in Ethiopia bounced back to me, the manager of the SignWriting List. For some reason the software that runs the List, said there was a diagram that made the message too long...Did you attach a diagram to this message, Eyasu? If so, could you send it again? Be sure it is a jpeg or a gif or png, and not other formats like BMP...sometimes the List software doesn't like BMP! smile...if that is not the reason, then just ignore this...but here is Eyasu's message, Everyone!....</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>---------------------------------<BR><DIV><DIV>On Jul 20, 2005, Eyasu wrote:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Dearest Val and All,</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Infact I am happy to contribute my professional experiance, Linguistics, to my illiterate deaf people.<SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN>The symbols that I have choosen from the sign puddle are thought to resemble with the hand shapes. That is my assumption as a biginner.<SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN></FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">I was just thinking to call upon a deaf signers with access to Internet. I will try to make contact with the Deaf Association in Ethiopia and make them do their best. As to my knowledge, you may know it too, no school in Ethiopia uses Sign Writing. A new thing is happening which needs inistitutional, sociatal integration. Perhaps there need a Sociolinguistic Survey before taking an action.</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">You are right Val. 'U' seems exactly similar to the 1st Ethiopian Alphabet which is 'You' in English. U1, U2.......U7 which is the very nice one. But when you proceed the 2nd, 3rd.....33rd there is no English Alphabet which resembles the Ethiopian ones, as in the attached painted alphabets. So what I am thinking for the time being is to name them as 1st, 2nd, 3rd...33rd EMA. What do you think?<SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN>Once the initial alphabets are written the rest six Vowels are simple i.e. only moving the hands in different direction as it is shown in the Manual.<SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN></FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Eyasu</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Eyasu tamene from Ethiopia wrote:</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">I have tried to sign write some of the alphabets of Ethiopians. I assumed some of them are not to be found in the sign puddle. Would you give your sinceare comments?</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Hello Everyone and Eyasu!</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">This is great to see some SignWriting symbols next to the pictures, Eyasu...</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Monaco" size="4" style="font: 14.0px Monaco">Are you happy with the symbols you have chosen for these hand positions? Do you think that other Ethiopian signers would know what you are writing, without the pictures? If so, then why not add those to your Ethiopian SignPuddle? I added your first one to the Ethiopian SignPuddle already, as you know, using the name U1..Have you seen that one in your puddle?...Was that the way you wanted it named...U1?...</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Monaco; min-height: 19.0px"><BR></P> <BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>