Vertical columns left to right...

[Kimberley Shaw]

Now I have visions of SignWritten manga! Any artists on the listserv??
Yes, I do intend to continue writing ASL from left-to-right ... but if I
were to learn Japanese sign (which is very different from ASL! I had
Japanese Deaf roommates while at Gallaudet summer immersion in '05), then I
would write from right to left.
Flexibility is great, and I do hope that we eventually have some Asian
SignWriters on board.
Off to do my handwriting homework now ...
Kim
PS - I can't actually read the Japanese books yet, alas -- can only pick out
a very few characters here and there. But that's the fun of working for a
library, I get to be around lots of kinds of books!


On 1/9/07, Shane Gilchrist O hEorpa <shane.gilchrist.oheorpa at gmail.com>
wrote:
>
> Val,
>
> when I read manga (Japanese cartoons) books, some are printed from
> right to left (with japanese replaced with English texts) - at first
> it can be confusing but I got used to it.
>
> Japanese/Chineses can sign-write from right shall they desire it - as
> long as its clear.
>
> Its good to see flexibility and I do look forward to seeing the SW
> materials in NS (Japanese Sign Language) and Chinese Sign Language
>
> Shane
>
> On 09/01/07, Valerie Sutton <signwriting at mac.com> wrote:
> > SignWriting List
> > January 9, 2007
> >
> > Kimberley Shaw wrote:
> > > I also have a change of subject here - just caught myself doing
> > > something that happens quite often when Signwriting ... I always write
> > > in columns. But I keep starting the page from the upper right side -
> > > like traditional Chinese or Japanese texts (also written in columns) -
> > > NOT from the upper-left corner! Then I'll catch myself and start again
> > > English (Euro-) style.  Anybody else inclined to do this? Or do I
> > > spend too much time around Asian books??
> > > Best,
> > > Kim from Boston
> >
> > ------
> >
> > I am impressed that you read Asian books, Kim! I personally do not
> > read any languages from Asia so I didn't even realize that their
> > columns went from the right side of the page to the left side of the
> > page, until one day, someone from Japan, who uses SignWriting,
> > mentioned this fact to me...
> >
> > This just proves how the vertical columns in SignWriting were never
> > based on anything Asian...the vertical columns came from a need to
> > write the human body vertically...
> >
> > Why did we choose to write the columns starting on the left side of
> > the page and moving to the right? Because SignWriting started in
> > western Europe and North America...that is why!
> >
> > Looking back on it, if I had realized that Asian documents went the
> > other direction, before we ever had published a SignWriting document,
> > would I have placed them from right to left? I have no idea...now we
> > are so used to the left to right, it might be confusing to switch it...
> >
> > But feel free to try to write that way and see how it feels! There is
> > no reason you couldn't, except the reader will automatically start on
> > the left and get confused...because we are not used to it.
> >
> > Val ;-)
> >
> >
>
>
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