Morphology in Sign Languages: Compounding, Ablaut, Classifiers

Sign language has five phonological parameters: hand configuration (the shape of the hand), movement (the motion of the hand), location (where the sign is produced in space), orientation (the direction the hand is facing), and non-manual markers (facial expressions and body movements). These parameters work together to create meaning, similar to how phonemes work in spoken languages. The orientation and non-manual markers were the last parameters to be identified in sign language research.

Sign languages have five fundamental phonological parameters that work together to form complete signs: (1) Hand Configuration (configuração de mãos) - the shape of the hand, (2) Point of Articulation (ponto de articulação) - where in space the sign is produced, (3) Movement (movimento) - the path and type of motion, (4) Orientation (orientação) - the direction the hand is facing, and (5) Non-manual Markers (expressões não manuais) - facial expressions and body language. These parameters are analogous to phonemes in spoken languages, but instead of being based on sound, they are based on visual-gestural elements. The term 'quirema' refers to the hand units in sign languages, derived from the Greek word 'kheir' meaning hand. Signs are constructed by combining these parameters, and changing one parameter can change the meaning of a sign. William Stokoe, an American linguist at Gallaudet University, pioneered the study of sign languages in the 1960s, establishing sign languages as legitimate languages with their own grammatical structures. Sign languages have the same linguistic structure as spoken languages, including phonology, morphology, semantics, pragmatics, and syntax, but use visual-gestural channels instead of auditory-vocal channels. Syntax in sign languages typically uses Object-Subject-Verb (OSV) order instead of the Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) order used in spoken languages, reflecting how deaf people think and process information in a more visual and spatial manner.

The five parameters of sign language are: 1) Movement, 2) Point of Articulation, 3) Handshape, 4) Facial Expression, and 5) Non-manual markers. This is a fundamental question that may appear in the CASS exam and requires memorization.

Sign language is constructed using 8 essential parameters: 4 manual parameters (configuration, location, orientation, movement) and 4 non-manual parameters (eye gaze, pointing, facial expression, body movement). Manual parameters control hand shape, position, direction, and motion. Non-manual parameters include eye gaze for focus, pointing for direction, facial expression for emotion and grammar, and body movement for emphasis. These parameters work together to create complete, meaningful signs. For example, 'papa' uses specific hand configuration, mouth location, particular orientation, and movement. 'Manger' (to eat) uses different parameters. All 8 parameters are essential and cannot be omitted, as they collectively form a complete language system.

Sign language has five phonological parameters necessary to form signs: (1) Hand configuration - the shape of the hand, (2) Point of articulation - where the sign is produced (e.g., mouth, face), (3) Movement - the motion of the hand, (4) Orientation of the hand - the direction the palm faces, and (5) Facial expression - which conveys meaning and emotion. These parameters work together to create meaningful signs, similar to how phonemes work in oral languages. For example, the sign for 'orange' uses different parameters than the sign for 'learn,' demonstrating how these elements combine to create distinct meanings.

Sign languages use a visual-gestural modality, meaning they are produced with hands and body movements and perceived through eyes, unlike spoken languages which are oral-auditory. This modality affects grammar: sign languages use spatial grammar where gesture direction indicates grammatical relationships (e.g., who gives and who receives). They also exhibit simultaneity, where multiple information pieces are conveyed simultaneously through different body parts (hands for nouns, facial expressions for questions). Some signs are iconic, where the gesture form resembles its meaning (e.g., 'cow' showing horns).

Modalidade refers to how language is expressed and received. In Libras (sign language), modality is visual and spatial: information is transmitted through hand movements in a neutral space in front of the body and received through vision. In oral languages, modality is oral and auditory: information is transmitted through voice and received through hearing. The key difference lies in the transmission and reception channels, not in the cognitive decoding process, which occurs identically in the brain for both modalities. This concept is fundamental for understanding how sign languages function as complete linguistic systems.

Human language operates through three major modalities: (1) Auditory-vocal - produced by talking (vocal cords, mouth) and perceived by hearing; (2) Visual-gestural - produced by signing (hands, body, face) and perceived by vision (complete languages like ASL); (3) Visual-written - produced by writing and perceived by reading. Sign languages are full languages with identical structure to spoken languages, not simplified gestures. Writing is a recent invention (at least four independent developments in history) that represents other modalities, requiring explicit instruction unlike natural language acquisition.

Sign languages like Libras have their own vocabulary that may correspond to multiple words in spoken languages. For example, a single sign in Libras may correspond to several Portuguese words that have similar meanings. This relationship between sign language vocabulary and spoken language vocabulary raises questions about how to represent concepts across different linguistic systems and how to develop appropriate translation and interpretation practices. Effective communication in sign languages requires understanding the context in which signs are used, as the meaning of signs can be influenced by contextual factors. Spoken languages and sign languages differ fundamentally in their modality, with spoken languages being primarily auditory-modal and sign languages being primarily visual-modal, which has important implications for how language is learned, used, and studied.

Visual languages are systems used for drawing, analogous to spoken languages for speaking. They use the same types of linguistic structure: a visual vocabulary built of memorized units stored in memory (both fixed and productive items), ordered by a grammatical system using grammatical roles and hierarchical constituents. There is cross-cultural diversity in visual languages corresponding to different drawing systems. The language faculty is actually a multimodal faculty consisting of three inherent modalities: graphic (visual), vocal (speech), and bodily (gestures). This architecture includes correspondences between modalities—for example, writing creates a correspondence between vocal sounds and graphic representations. Expressions emerge as interactive activation states of the subcomponents within this broader architecture.

The arbitrariness of the sign principle states there is no inherent connection between a word's form and its meaning—different languages use entirely different words for the same concepts. While some signs may appear more iconic (visually resembling their referents), true arbitrariness remains the norm. Comparative analysis reveals that while bees, parrots, and dogs can communicate, none possess all four design features of human language. Bees lack displacement, parrots lack duality of patterning, and dogs use non-arbitrary signals. This demonstrates that human language's unique combination of features enables capabilities no other species possesses.

The arbitrariness of language, as proposed by Saussure, means there is no natural relationship between the sound of a word and its meaning (e.g., 'casa' in Portuguese, 'house' in English, 'maison' in French all mean 'house' but have no inherent connection), while iconicity refers to motivated words where form reflects meaning (e.g., 'cocoricó' mimics a rooster's crow, '19' combines 10 and 9). Modern linguistics views these as complementary phenomena rather than opposing positions, with iconicity manifesting through metaphors, metonymies, and semantic extensions that structure human cognition and communication.

A linguística cognitiva não separa sinais icônicos de arbitrários. Muitos sinais ditos arbitrários têm iconicidade corporificada. A língua de sinais é o corpo inteiro, mas alguns sinais são arbitrários e econômicos porque são corporificados. Sinais icônicos têm relação visual com o significado. A direção dos referentes no espaço é visual e corporal.

A fundamental difference between Saussure and Peirce concerns their conceptions of the relationship between signs and their meanings. Saussure argued that the relationship between meaning and signifier was arbitrary, with no intrinsic connection—for example, there is no logical reason for the word 'dog' to relate to the concept of a four-legged animal. However, Peirce believed that while arbitrariness was true in some cases, signs could also have natural or iconic connections with their objects—for example, an image of an apple is iconically related to the idea of an apple.

Early communication signals were iconic—they resembled what they meant (like pointing). As signals became conventionalized through repeated use, they lost iconicity and became arbitrary. This transition occurred because once signals were recognized, they could be understood regardless of resemblance. This shift from iconic to arbitrary signaling represents a key evolutionary step in language development, enabling the complex symbolic systems characteristic of human language.