LL-L "Language programming" 2009.01.11 (04) [E]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 11 January 2009 - Volume 04
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From: Mike Morgan <mwmosaka at gmail.com>
Subject: LL-L "Language programming" 2009.01.10 (05) [E]

A couple days ago Sandy wrote:

In British Sign Language you can sign, with one sign:

... one year old, two years old, three years old... (until the numeration


system splits into separate words).

... yesterday, two days ago, three days ago, four days ago.


tomorrow, in two days time, in three days time, in four days time.
last year, two years ago, three years ago... ten years ago.
next year, in a years time, in two years time... in ten years time.


SIgn langues I have encounter are all much the same as described; the only
difference is in WHICH numbers can be "incorporated" into which expression.
Sometimes that differs even from dialect to dialect (for example, in
Japanese Sign language, for the sign "X number of months", in the east they
generally feel comfortable incorporating numbers 1-4 only; in the west they
feel fine going all the way to 12 ... though of course for 12, they would
probably chose to say "1 year"!)



Connecting this to the discussion of 3D geometry, as Sandy has discussed
more than once, signing "maps" onto the 3D space around the signer for all
sorts of functions, spatial as well as grammatical (person agreement, for
example), to reference "token space" as well as "surrogate space".



in additon, there is the 4th D, time, that is also mapped onto this same 3D
space, and most sign languages have multiple timelines. Typically one of
them goes backwards to past and forwards to the future (as in Sandy's signs
for yesterday, today and tomorrow; last year, this year, next year, etc). In
additon to this frontward-backward timeline, there is the vertical timeline,
used for example when i tell my life story and low down is when i was
younger (shorter) and it goes progressively higher as I get older (taller).
A third, right-to-left time line is used, in Japanese SIgn language anyway,
for time spans ... as for example, when talking about wokring Sunday through
Friday, or having a vacation from Jan 20th to 27th. in the latter, "20"
would be signed to the right and "27" to the left (with "FROM" some
equivalent sign moving from the first to the second). A FOURTH timeline,
which I only know of from Japanese SIgn Language, is vertical like the 2nd,
but in the REVERSE direction, i.e. top-to-bottom. Like the 3rd one this is
for discribing "from X to Y" dates ... and is connected with the traditional
style of writing top-to-bottom (presumably).



And like 3D space, such 4thD space can also be used metaphorically in sign
language ... or for pointing out the enigmas of life when things SHOULD be
moving in ONE direction, but in fact are going in the OPPOSITE direction.



Mike || マイク || माईक || Мика || માઈક || მაიქ || ਮਾਈਕ
מייק || மாஇக் || Miqueu || U C > || ما یک || Mihangel
================
Dr Michael W Morgan
Ishara Foundation || ईशारा फॉउंडेशन  || イシャラ基金
Mumbai/Bombay *|* मुंबई *|* ムンバイ/ボンベイ (インド)
www.ishara.org
+++++++++++++++
Одной рукой не поднять двух арбузов
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