How many symbols do we use in SignWriting? Part 1

[Valerie Sutton]

SignWriting List
August 18, 2009

On Aug 18, 2009, at 8:09 AM, Valerie Sutton wrote:
> First, in Part 1, I will discuss how I personally answer the  
> question, when I am teaching people who are new to SignWriting and  
> the ISWA...

Part 1...How do I answer the question: "How many symbols do we write  
with, in SignWriting?".

My short answer:
We SPELL signs with 28 groups of symbols. There are 10 groups of  
handshapes, 10 groups of movement symbols, 5 groups for the face and  
head, and 3 groups for torso, body and timing. When we write sentences  
and literature, we add another group of punctuation symbols.

So when people say that English spells with 26 letters, I say:

"SignWriting spells with 28 groups of symbols."


Another longer answer:

1. The International SignWriting Alphabet (the ISWA) has 7 categories  
of symbols:

ISWA 2008
Category 1: Hands
Category 2: Movement
Category 3: Face Head
Category 4: Body
Category 5: Dynamics
Category 6: Punctuation
Category 7: Advanced Sorting (for computer programming of sorting)

2. We SPELL individual signs with 5 categories:

Category 1: Hands
Category 2: Movement
Category 3: Face Head
Category 4: Body
Category 5: Dynamics

3. We write SENTENCES with added Punctuation, so that makes 6  
categories:

Category 1: Hands
Category 2: Movement
Category 3: Face Head
Category 4: Body
Category 5: Dynamics
Category 6: Punctuation

4. We NEVER write with Category 7. It is only for computer programming  
of dictionary-sorting.



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