Pupils in a traditional classroom situation signal to their teacher that they want to be heard

Manual communication systems use articulation of the hands (hand signs), gestures, body language and facial expressions in place of the voice to mediate a message between persons. Being expressed manually, they are received visually, and sometimes tactually (see tactile signing). Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2344x1657, 756 KB)Austrian students in a traditional classroom raise their hands to signal to their teacher that they want to speak. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2344x1657, 756 KB)Austrian students in a traditional classroom raise their hands to signal to their teacher that they want to speak. ... Military signalmen use hand and body gestures to direct flight operations aboard aircraft carriers. ... This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Photographs from the 1862 book Mécanisme de la Physionomie Humaine by Guillaume Duchenne. ... Tactile signing is a common means of communication used by people with both a sight and hearing impairment (see Deafblindness), which is based on a standard system of Deaf manual signs. ...

Manual communication is employed in systems that are codes for spoken languages (see Manually Coded Language), and with natural languages, such as in sign languages. Spoken language is a language that people utter words of the language. ... Manually Coded Languages (MCL) are representations of spoken languages in a gestural-visual form; that is, sign language versions of spoken langauges. ... 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 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 express fluidly a speakers thoughts. ...

Other, simpler forms of manual communication have also been developed. They are neither natural languages nor even a code that can fully render one. They communicate with a very limited set of signals about an even smaller set of topics and have been developed for situations where speech is not practical or permitted, or secrecy is desired.

Environments with manual communication used

• Some cloistered religious communities (see Monastic sign language)
• While scuba diving
• In television recording studios
• In loud environments (such as a stock exchange, sawmill, or at a horse race - see tic-tac)
• When signalling across distance to a crane driver, ship or plane (see semaphore).
• While hunting (see Kalahari bushmen)
• In the game Charades
• In Rueda de Casino
• In combat where stealth or noise makes other forms of communication impractical.
• Between lifeguards

Monastery of St. ... Monastic sign languages have been used in Europe from at least the tenth century by christian monks, and some, such as Cistercian and Trappist sign languages, are still in use today — not only in Europe but also in Japan, China and the USA.[1] Unlike deaf sign languages, they are... SCUBA is an acronym for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. ... A television studio is an installation in which television or video productions take place, either for live television, for recording live on tape, or for the acquisition of raw footage for postproduction. ... This article or section should include material from Saw mill A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards. ... Tic-tac (also tick-tack and non-hyphenated variants) is a traditional method of sign language used by bookmakers to communicate the odds of certain horses. ... A tower crane with a pivoted main boom Cranes on the Sheksna River, Cherepovets, Russia A worker telecommanding a crane from the ground A crane is a tower or derrick equipped with cables and pulleys that is used to lift and lower materials. ... A Chappe semaphore tower near Saverne, France // The semaphore or optical telegraph is an apparatus for conveying information by means of visual signals, with towers with pivoting blades or paddles, shutters, in a matrix, or hand-held flags etc. ... The Bushmen (also known as Khwe Khoe, Basarwa, or San) peoples of South Africa and neighbouring Botswana and Namibia, who live in the Kalahari, are part of the Khoisan group and are related to the Khoikhoi. ... Charades or charade is a word guessing game. ... Rueda de Casino (Rueda, Casino Rueda, Salsa Rueda) is a particular type of round dancing of Salsa. ... Combat, or fighting, is purposeful violent conflict between one or more persons or organizations, often intended to establish dominance over the opposition. ... For the British Army regiment see the Life Guards A lifeguard in the most general sense of the word is an emergency service worker, who is a qualified strong swimmer, trained and certified in water rescue and first aid, who is responsible for overseeing the safety of users of a...

See also

• Nonverbal communication