Auslan is the sign language used by the Australian Deaf community. ISO 639 is one of several international standards that lists short codes for language names. ... SIL International is a non-profit, faith-based, scientific organization with the main purpose to study, develop and document lesser-known languages for the purpose of expanding linguistic knowledge, promoting world literacy and aiding minority language development. ... This list of languages is alphabetical by English name. ... A sign language (also signed language) is a language which uses manual communication instead of sound to convey meaning - simultaneously combining handshapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speakers thoughts. ... This article needs to be wikified. ...

The term 'Auslan' is a blend of "Australian sign language", and was coined by Dr Trevor Johnston in the late 1980s, though the language itself is much older. Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ...

Auslan is related to British Sign Language (BSL) and New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL), and the three may be considered dialects of the one language, BANZSL. They may also be related to South African Sign Language (SASL). British sign language (BSL) is the sign language used in the United Kingdom (UK). ... New Zealand Sign Language, or NZSL, is the main language of the deaf community in New Zealand. ... BANZSL, or British, Australian and New Zealand Sign Language, is the name given to the parent language which British Sign Language (BSL), Auslan and New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) may be considered dialects of. ...

Recognition of Auslan

Auslan was recognised by the Australian Federal Government as a "community language other than English" in policy statements in 1987 ^{[1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auslan#endnote_LoBianco)} and 1991 ^{[2] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auslan#endnote_Dawkin)}. However this recognition is yet to filter through to many institutions, government departments and professionals who work with deaf people. This article describes the national government of Australia. ... 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Auslan in relation to English

Auslan is a natural language distinct from spoken or written English. Its (flexible) grammar and vocabulary often do not have direct English counterparts. English may be referred to as Auslan's host language, as the Deaf community, surrounded by English, inevitably draws from it. Signers make use of English words through fingerspelling. Some words are preferably fingerspelt even when there is an equivalent sign. Fingerspelling can also be used for emphasis, clarification, or (sometimes extensively) by English-speaking learners of Auslan. Some signs feature an English-word's initial letter (as a handshape from a manual alphabet) and use it within a sign. For example, the sign for "Canberra" resembles a "C" on a flagpole, while the sign for "team" uses "T" handshapes, but is otherwise the same as the sign for "group". The term natural language is used to distinguish languages spoken by humans for general-purpose communication from constructs such as computer-programming languages or the languages used in the study of formal logic, especially mathematical logic. ... A manual alphabet is a system of representing all the letters of an alphabet, using only the hands. ... A manual alphabet is a system of representing all the letters of an alphabet, using only the hands. ...

It is difficult to sign in Auslan and speak in English at the same time, especially as both languages have their own grammar and vocabulary. However, mouthing of an English word together with a sign may serve to clarify when one sign may have several English translations.

Signed English

Signed English was an attempt to artificially create a sign language with English grammar, largely using signs from Auslan with some additional contrived signs and imports from American Sign Language (ASL). It was, and still is, used largely in education as an attempt to provide a visual analogy of English and its grammar for children. The usage of Signed English in schools is controversial in the Deaf community, who regard Signed English as being contrived and unnatural (see constructed language). Signed English has now been largely rejected by Deaf communities in Australia; however a number of its signs have made their way into normal usage. Various attempts to develop a signed mode of the English language have been developed for use in deaf education. ... American Sign Language is the dominant sign language in the United States, anglophone Canada and parts of Mexico. ... An artificial or constructed language (known colloquially as a conlang among aficionados), is a language whose vocabulary and grammar are specifically devised by an individual or small group, rather than having naturally evolved as part of a culture as with natural languages. ...

Written and recorded Auslan

Auslan has no written form. Transcribing Auslan is largely an academic exercise. Auslan dictionaries use either photographs or drawings with motion arrows to describe signs, or CD-ROMs containing short video clips. Auslan signers generally read and write in English. Video has been used to record stories and jokes (etc), as these especially lose a lot when translated to English.

Dialects of Auslan

Auslan exhibits a high degree of variation, depending on the signer's age, educational background and geographic location. Auslan is usually regarded as having two dialects - Northern (Queensland and NSW), and Southern (Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, and Western Australia). The vocabulary of the two dialects differs significantly, with different signs used even for very common concepts such as colors, animals, and days of the week; differences in grammar appear to be slight. However, communication between different varieties of Auslan poses little difficulty for most deaf Australians. Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Ubertas et Fidelitas (Fertility and Faithfulness) Nickname: The Apple Isle Other Australian states and territories Capital Hobart Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: United for the Common Wealth Nickname: Festival State Other Australian states and territories Capital Adelaide Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ... A vocabulary is a set of words known to a person or other entity, or that are part of a specific language. ...

Many of the regional differences may reflect regional variation in the signed communication brought to Australia by deaf immigrants and used in the initial development of educational institutes for the deaf in Australia. The first school for the deaf in NSW was established by a Scotsman [Thomas Pattison], whereas in Victoria, the Victorian School for Deaf Children was founded by an Englishman, Frederick J Rose. Irish Sign Language also was of influence, being used in Catholic schools until the 1950s.

The dialects are drawing closer together today due to the printing of Auslan dictionaries and increasing ease of travel within Australia. There seems to be little drive or need for any formal attempt at standardisation, as there is little difficulty in communication.

Australian Aboriginal sign languages

A number of Aboriginal sign languages exist in Australia such as Walpiri Sign Language. They occur in the southern, central, and western desert regions, coastal Arnhem Land, some islands of north coast, the western side of Cape York Peninsula, and on some Torres Strait Islands. Little research is available on these languages. They include: The Walpiri language is spoken by Aboriginal communities in the central desert region of Australia, and is also known as WALBIRI, ELPIRA, ILPARA, WAILBRI, WARLPIRI. When in mourning, Walpiri women often do not talk for long periods of time, and a signed mode of the language is used in its... Arnhem Land is an area of 97,000 sq. ... Cape York Peninsula, far north Queensland, Australia. ... The Torres Strait Islands are a group of islands, numbering more than 100, which lie in Torres Strait, the waterway separating Cape York, Queensland, Australia from Papua New Guinea. ...

• Aranda (or Arunta) Sign Language
• Dieri Sign Language
• Djingili Sign Language
• Jaralde Sign Language
• Manjiljarra Sign Language
• Mudbura Sign Language
• Murngin Sign Language
• Ngada Sign Language
• Torres Straits Islander Sign Language
• Walpiri [or Walbiri] Sign Language
• Warumungu [or Warramunga] Sign Language
• Western Desert Sign Language (Yurira Watjalku)
• Worora Kinship Sign Language

(see this factsheet (http://library.gallaudet.edu/dr/faq-world-sl-country.html))

Further reading

• Johnston, T.A. & Wilkin, P. (1998). Signs of Australia : A new dictionary of Auslan (the sign language of the Australian deaf community). North Rocks, NSW, Australia : North Rocks Press : Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children.
• Sebeok, T.A. & Umiker-Sebeok, D.J. (1978). Aboriginal sign languages of the Americas and Australia. New York : Plenum Press. (4th floor, E98.S5A23 v.1 & 2).

External Links

• www.auslan.org.au - An online 'sign-bank' or dictionary of Auslan
• AAD (http://www.aad.org.au/) - Australian Association of the Deaf
• ASLIA (http://www.aslia.com.au/) - Australian Sign Language Interpreters Association
• Auslan entry on ethnologue.com (http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=asf/)

Bibliography

1. ^  Lo Bianco, J. (1987). National Policy on Languages. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.
2. ^  Dawkins, J (1991). Australia's Language: The Australian Language and Literacy Policy. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Serice