Since I have severe hearing problems I (and the immediate family) have decided to learn american sign language, as such, i plan to take a break from chinese in order to try to learn more quickly. Because of the asl decision, and the fact that I one day want to visit taiwan, I am wondering, do you guys see a lot of usage of taiwanese sign language (or any sign language for that matter) in taiwan? Do you think/see a large amount of people use it so that I can consider learning it for easier communication? If somehow it is not taiwanese sign language that is mostly in use, which is so that I can consider learning it?
I see loads of people signing in Taipei. However, my bus to work does stop at the Taipei School for the Hearing Impaired.
I’d no idea before reading your post that there were different sign languages. Blimey - that’s daft isn’t it. I don’t know what sign language the hearing impaired guys I see are using, but I’d assume that it must be Taiwanese sign language.
Taiwanese sign language is totally different from ASL and Signed English.
Many of the signs are based on Chinese characters or things from Taiwanese culture. For example, the sign for “name” goes back to the idea that students all have their names embroidered near their shoulder on their school uniforms. Instead of fingerspelling, they have some short gestural forms that represent radicals and then the rest of the character might be “written” in the air. (My surname was signed that way.)
I think you can sometimes get classes at places like the Y, and I think I’ve seen books around as well. When I was in Kenting years ago, I had an epic encounter with seven Deaf students, a rubber boat and an indignant lifeguard with motorized water wings, made possible because at that time I was learning ASL and one of the students had been to the US and knew some, so he was interpreting between my bad ASL and Taiwanese sign. Worked just fine, not that we had awfully sophisticated communication needs at the time.
[quote=“tomthorne”]I see loads of people signing in Taipei. However, my bus to work does stop at the Taipei School for the Hearing Impaired.
I’d no idea before reading your post that there were different sign languages. Blimey - that’s daft isn’t it. I don’t know what sign language the hearing impaired guys I see are using, but I’d assume that it must be Taiwanese sign language.[/quote]
Sign language is closely tied to the spoken language it represents but it’s structure is very different. This makes it necessary to have these different sign languages.
“All languages can say the same things but the strategies are often very different.” Sign language encapsulates the strategy of each language.
Thank you all, for your replies, I also have another question, do you notice if tsl is used more in certain areas than others, for example, used more near a school (especially one that teaches tsl or other sign languages) used more in big cities vs. small cities/towns. What I’m trying to say is, when I learn tsl, are there definite parts of taiwan where I would have better understanding/communication than others? Or would it be safe to say that almost everybody understand some?
I’m not sure what Joschka means about “closely tied to the spoken language”; I don’t think that’s true. British Sign Language, American Sign Language, Martha’s Vineyard Sign Language and many others that are present in English-speaking areas are very different from each other. A BSL and an ASL signer cannot communicate with each other through sign language, as I understand it. TSL itself is very different from Mandarin and Taiwanese in syntax and grammar, though there are some lexical borrowings.
The majority of TSL signers in Taiwan are graduates of or students at one of the four state schools for the hearing impaired: Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung. Many of these signers remain in the area after leaving school. Community groups for the deaf and hard of hearing are also centred around the schools, so they are probably the best place to start asking.
[quote=“Joschka”]Sign language is closely tied to the spoken language it represents but it’s structure is very different. This makes it necessary to have these different sign languages.
“All languages can say the same things but the strategies are often very different.” Sign language encapsulates the strategy of each language.[/quote]
ASL is a separate language and has its own syntax, vocabulary, morphology and literature. It does not encapsulate “the strategies of English”. It shares some characteristics with English, but then again so do Spanish, French, and many other languages that are not English.
Oh the money I have made on this argument. An ex-girlfriend of a very good friend of mine once told me that all sign languages can understand each other. I said rubbish and she insisted on betting me. I accepted and the more we talked the higher the price went. I have some deaf friends and she got slaughtered financially and since I didn’t like her I insisted that she pays up. She hated me and my friend and he bought me quite a few beers after they broke up cause he didn’t know how to get rid of her. Signing is a very interesting idea based on more than many of us understand about language. Forget about the syntax you know. Signing is different. ASL and JSL which started our argument are worlds apart. If you want to be fascinated just spend some time with a deaf person.
Hi Rinchan, I noticed that you were interested in information about TSL (Taiwan Sign Language). I am from North America, but I have been living here in Taiwan and learning TSL for the past 3 years. If you want to know more information you can ask me and hopefully I can help.
I learned some Taiwanese Sign Language at the Shi-da (NTNU) students’ sign language club. It turned out to be harder than I expected. They have two kinds of lessons - natural sign language. i.e. what deaf people really use in conversation, and signing to songs, which is a bit different because the signs are done along with the words of the song, which of course follows the grammar of spoken Mandarin. I was really interested in the natural sign language, but the song signing is more popular.
Taiwanese Sign Language was developed systematically during the Japanese colonial rule, so the biggest influence on it is Japanese sign language. After that, there was some input from mainland China sign language, principally from Shanghai, I believe. There are also indigenous Taiwanese elements, such as the signs for “blue,” which is based on Aborigines’ facial tatoos, “pig,” showing the tusks of a wild boar, “tea” which shows the action of picking tea rather than drinking it, and “Taiwan” which shows the action of eating a yam and looks like it might mean “blow job.”
One place where you will see people signing is at the Jianguo Flower Market near Da’an Park, where there are some deaf vendors. There is a pub in Keelung where the bar staff are deaf.
