QUESTION: Can we write left-handed signing?

[Charles Butler]

I think that this is a situation where the "citation" form is right handed, but 
one may have left-handed signers switching dominant hands. 


Long-term, we need to have a function that will switch everything from 
"right-hand dominant" to "left-hand dominant" and "expressive" to "receptive" 
but it currently does not exist.

Every class I have ever taught in Sign Writing has had at least one left-handed 
signer, so that we teach "write what you see on your own hands". Having 
left-handed and right-handed students teaches everyone that the system is 
universal, not one hand dominant over the other in writing. 


Charles

 



________________________________
From: Charles Butler <chazzer3332000 at YAHOO.COM>
To: SW-L at LISTSERV.VALENCIACC.EDU
Sent: Mon, February 7, 2011 1:34:05 PM
Subject: Re: QUESTION: Can we write left-handed signing?


The dark arrow is for the right hand, the white arrow is for the left hand.  If 
you write your language left-hand dominant, that is fine, but left and right 
don't change. The arrows are for which hand is used, not which is dominant. 


Fingers follow the hand.  The whole system is built for both hands.

Charles

 



________________________________
From: Valerie Sutton <sutton at SIGNWRITING.ORG>
To: SW-L at LISTSERV.VALENCIACC.EDU
Sent: Mon, February 7, 2011 1:09:21 PM
Subject: QUESTION: Can we write left-handed signing?

SignWriting List
February 7, 2011

QUESTION:

On Feb 2, 2011:
> Hello!
> There is one thing I was wondering about ; I « sign » with my left hand, and 
>the the writing is made for right handed persons. I haven't read enough to know 
>if the inversion in writing can pose a problem in the understanding. As a left 
>handed person I would, for example,automatically inverse the place of the dark 
>side on the drawing on the hand « flat » : I would put It on the left side 
>rather than on the right side. I would also, on the drawing of the hand with 
>finger, put the stick representing the thumb on the right side. It trouble me 
>much when I »m trynig to learn. Is the inversion accepted?
> I go on descovering the Sign Writing. I will surely rewrite. Have an nice day!

---------

ANSWER:

Thank you for this message and your question....

Go right ahead and write left-handed signing - no problem!

It is accepted to write either way.

Writing left-handed signing or right-handed signing - BOTH can be written in 
SignWriting and there is no problem reading it...

Just as there is no problem in real life...when you look at a left-handed signer 
or a right-handed signer - we can all understand each other, whether we are 
signing to each other, or reading it in SignWriting...

In our formal SignWriting documents, we choose to write right-handed signing, 
because most signers are right handed, so that is our standard way of 
publishing...but we do have some publications written in left handed signing -

Right now you notice this more, because you are new to SignWriting, but later it 
will become less important until you get used to reading it either way -

I have more to tell you about left-handed and right-handed signing next 
message...



Val ;-)

Valerie Sutton
SignWriting List moderator
sutton at signwriting.org

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