The legal recognition of signed languages differs widely. In some jurisdictions (countries, states, provinces or regions), a signed language is recognised as an official language; in others, it has a protected status in certain areas (such as education). Although a government may stipulate in its constitution (or laws) that a "signed language" is recognised, it may fail to specify which signed language; several different signed languages may be commonly used.
The most frequently used framework for the legal recognition of sign languages, adopted and further developed by the World Federation of the Deaf, [1] was developed by Dr Maartje De Meulder. [2]
Extending legal recognition is a major concern of Deaf culture. Symbolic recognition does not guarantee an improvement in the lives of signed-language users, and it has been argued that signed languages should be supported not merely as an accommodation for disabled people, but as a communication medium in language communities. [3]
Auslan was recognised by the Australian government as a "community language other than English" and the preferred language of the Deaf community in 1987 and 1991 policy statements. Although the recognition does not ensure the provision of services in Auslan, its use in Deaf education and by Auslan-English interpreters is becoming more common.
It is now increasingly recognised that signing deaf people constitute a group like any other non-English speaking language group in Australia, with a distinct sub-culture recognised by shared history, social life and sense of identity, united and symbolised by fluency in Auslan, the principal means of communication within the Australian Deaf Community.
— Australia's Language: The Australian Language and Literacy Policy (page 20). (Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 1991)
Austrian Sign Language (Österreichische Gebärdensprache, or ÖGS) was recognised by the Austrian Parliament in 2005. On 1 September 2005, the Constitution of Austria was amended to include a new article: §8 (3) Die Österreichische Gebärdensprache ist als eigenständige Sprache anerkannt. Das Nähere bestimmen die Gesetze. ("Austrian Sign Language is recognised as an independent language. The laws will determine the details.") [4]
Belgium's Parliament of the French Community recognised French Belgian Sign Language (LSFB) by decree in October 2003. The recognition entails:
According to the Décret relatif à la reconnaissance de la langue des signes (Decree on the Recognition of Sign Language), [5] "It concerns a symbolic recognition that goes hand-in-hand with a general measure, permitting every minister to take action in fields relative to his authority." [6]
Flemish Sign Language (Dutch : Vlaamse Gebarentaal or VGT) was recognised on 24 April 2006 by the Flemish Parliament. The recognition entails:
Cultural recognition entails that the Flemish Government recognises the Flemish Sign Language as the language of the Deaf Community in Flanders. This 'recognition' encompasses the following three meanings: (1) the Flemish Government acknowledges the correctness of the fact that the Flemish Sign Language is the language of the Deaf Community in Flanders, (2) the Flemish Government also accepts the existence of this language in the judicial domain and treats it accordingly and (3) the Flemish Government expresses its respect for this language. [7]
Although Brazilian Sign Language (LIBRAS) was legally recognised in 2002, a 2005 law stipulated that it could not replace written Portuguese. [8] [9] The language must be taught as a part of the speech-language pathology curriculum, and LIBRAS is an elective undergraduate subject.
The Accessible Canada Act, passed on 21 June 2019, recognised "American Sign Language (ASL), Quebec Sign Language and Indigenous sign languages (...) as the primary languages for communication by deaf persons in Canada." [10] Inuit Sign Language (IUR), used in Canada's Arctic communities, was developed locally by families and communities for their deaf families and community members. Deaf Inuit who have attended school in southern Canada have also learned ASL. IUR made its debut in the Nunavut legislature in 2008. [11]
Maritime Sign Language (MSL), which derives from British Sign Language, is moribund in Canada's Maritime provinces. [12] It is not officially recognised, and has been replaced by ASL in schools. [12] The Halifax School for the Deaf, which operated from 1856 to June 1961, taught in MSL; after that, the Interprovincial School for the Education of the Deaf (later renamed the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority, or APSEA) in Amherst, Nova Scotia, took over until it closed in 1995. [12] [13]
Chilean Sign Language (Spanish : Lengua de Señas Chilena or LSCh), was enacted as Law No. 20,422 in 2010 to ensure equal opportunity for disabled people. The law recognises sign language as the natural means of communication for the deaf community. [14]
Czech Sign Language gained legal recognition with the passage of the Sign Language Law, 155/1998 Sb ("Zákon o znakové řeči 155/1998 Sb"). [15]
Danish Sign Language gained legal recognition on 13 May 2014. The Danish Parliament established the Danish Sign Language Council "to devise principles and guidelines for the monitoring of the Danish sign language and offer advice and information on the Danish sign language." [16]
The European Parliament unanimously approved a resolution about sign languages on 17 June 1988. [17] The resolution suggests that all member states recognise their sign languages as official languages of the Deaf community.
The European Parliament [...] calls on the Commission to make a proposal to the Council concerning official recognition of the sign language used by deaf people in each Member State. [18]
The EP issued another resolution in 1998, with essentially the same content as the 1988 resolution. [19] A third resolution was passed in 2016. It was drafted by Helga Stevens, Europe's first deaf female MEP and president of the European Union of the Deaf from 2005 to 2007. The resolution, on sign language and professional sign-language interpreters, draws on Deaf studies and linguistics. [20]
Finnish Sign Language was recognised in the constitution in August 1995:
Section 17 - Right to one's language and culture [...] The rights of persons using sign language and of persons in need of interpretation or translation aid owing to disability shall be guaranteed by an Act. [21]
Icelandic Sign Language was recognised by law in education in 2004:
This National Curriculum Guide contains, for the first time, provisions on special Icelandic instruction for students whose mother tongue is not Icelandic. There are also new provisions on special Icelandic instruction for deaf and hearing-impaired pupils and sign-language instruction for the deaf. The objectives for Icelandic instruction of immigrants and the deaf and of sign-language instruction fall under the subject area of language arts (Icelandic) in compulsory school. [...] Sign language is of basic importance for the development of language, personality and thinking of deaf children. For the deaf, sign language is the most important source of knowledge and their route to participation in Icelandic culture and the culture of the deaf. Sign language is of great importance for all school work and for the pupils' life and work. [22]
Although Indo-Pakistani Sign Language (IPSL) is officially unrecognised, it is used in India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. [23]
The Recognition of Irish Sign Language for the Deaf Community Bill 2016 passed the Irish Parliament on 14 December 2017, and was signed into law by President Michael D. Higgins on 24 December of that year. [24] [25] Before 2017, there was no automatic right for deaf people to have an ISL interpreter except for criminal-court proceedings. ISL recognition provides more legal rights and better access to public services, including education, healthcare, media and banking. [26] [27] [28]
Italian Sign Language (Lingua dei Segni Italiana, LIS) was recognised on 19 May 2021. Although opponents of LIS recognition say that it is not a language because it lacks grammar, its grammar has been studied. [29]
The 2010 Constitution of Kenya recognises Kenyan Sign Language and, according to Article 7.3b, says that Kenya would promote its development and use. KSL is given official status in Article 120 (1), which says that "the official languages of Parliament are Kiswahili, English and Kenyan Sign Language and the business of Parliament may be conducted in English, Kiswahili and Kenyan Sign Language." [30]
Maltese Sign Language (Maltese : Lingwa tas-Sinjali Maltija, or LSM) was officially recognised by the Parliament of Malta in March 2016. [31]
Mexican Sign Language (lengua de señas mexicana, or LSM) was declared a "national language" in 2003, and it began use in public deaf education. [32] Deaf education in Mexico had focused on oralism (speech and lipreading), and few schools conducted classes in LSM. [33]
Although Nepali Sign Language has not been recognised as the official language of Nepal's deaf population, legislation is proposed which will bring Nepali law into line with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Dutch Sign Language (Dutch : Nederlandse Gebarentaal, or NGT) was recognised by law in 2020. The Christian Union party introduced a bill to recognise NGT in 2010, but it did not pass. [34] In October 2016, MPs Roelof van Laar (Labour Party) and Carla Dik-Faber (Christian Union) proposed a bill legally recognising NGT as an official language. [35] MP Attje Kuiken (Labour Party) took over the bill in September 2019 (after Van Laar's departure), and MP Jessica van Eijs (Democrats 66) joined Kuiken and Dik-Faber. [36] [37] At the end of the month, the Advisory Division of the Council of State said that the text of the bill was still too vague and did not clarify which problems it intended to address and how it would do so; it asked if "the Deaf culture" mentioned in the bill also needed to be legally recognised and, if so, what that term entailed. [38]
New Zealand Sign Language became the country's third official language, joining English and Māori, when a bill was passed in the New Zealand Parliament on 6 April 2006. [39]
Part 2 cl 6: New Zealand Sign Language is declared to be an official language of New Zealand.
Macedonian Sign Language (Macedonian : Македонски знаковен јазик, romanized: Makedonski znakoven jazik) is officially recognized as a "natural way of communication between people", and is regulated by a law which allows anyone in North Macedonia to study it. The law also ensures the right to an interpreter upon request. [40]
British and Irish Sign Language were recognised as official languages by the Northern Ireland Office in 2004. [41]
Norwegian Sign Language is recognised by law for education.[ citation needed ]
Papua New Guinean Sign Language became the country's fourth official language in May 2015. [42]
Article 3 of Republic Act No. 11106 declared Filipino Sign Language the country's national sign language, specifying that it be recognized, supported and promoted as the medium of official communication in all transactions involving the deaf and the language of instruction in deaf education. [43] [44]
Peru officially recognized Peruvian Sign Language as the country's national sign language by law published in the official Gazette on 21 May. (Diario Oficial El Peruano
Art. 74, 2 (h): In implementing the education policy, the state shall be charged with protecting and developing Portuguese sign language, as an expression of culture and an instrument for access to education and equal opportunities. [45]
Russian Sign Language (Russian : Русский жестовый язык, romanized: Russkii zhestovyi yazyk) has limited legal recognition. Under the federal Law on Protection of People with Disabilities, it is considered a language used for inter-personal communication only; no state support is provided.[ citation needed ]
Slovak Sign Language was recognised in 1995 by law. [46]
Until 2023, South African Sign Language (SASL) was not specifically recognised as an official language by the country's constitution. The phrase "sign language" is used generically. [47] On 13 November 2009, the Constitutional Review Committee met to explore the possibility of upgrading SASL to South Africa's 12th official language. [48] In May 2022 the 18th Constitutional Amendment Bill to make SASL an official language was published for public comment. [49] In May 2023 the bill was voted on by parliament, and on 19 July 2023 it was signed into law. [50]
The "South Korean National Assembly passed legislation to recognize Korean Sign Language as one of Korea's official languages" on 31 December 2015. [42] [51]
Article 13,4: The Generalitat shall grant the use of the sign language of deaf persons (which shall be used for education) with protection and respect. [52]
Ms Pearl said it was June of 2007.
According to a 23 September 2010 report, Sri Lankan Sign Language has been officially recognised. [53]
Thai Sign Language was recognised as "the national language of deaf people in Thailand" on 17 August 1999 in a resolution signed by the Permanent Secretary for Education on behalf of the Royal Thai Government which affirmed the rights of deaf people to learn the language at home and in schools. [54] According to a 13 October 1999 report by Charles Reilly, "specific actions will be taken by the government, including hiring deaf people as teachers and instructors of sign language in deaf schools, and providing interpreters for deaf people in higher education." [54]
Turkish Sign Language is used by the country's deaf community. On 1 July 2005, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey enacted an updated Disability Law (No. 5378) which referred to sign language. According to Law No. 15, sign language is to be used in deaf education; Law No. 30 stipulates that sign language interpretation be provided to deaf people. There has been discussion in Parliament about developing a standardised sign language. [55]
On 8 October 1995, Uganda adopted a new constitution promoting the development of a sign language for the deaf. [56] Ugandan Sign Language was not specified. Twenty-five-year-old Alex Ndeezi, executive director of the Uganda National Association of the Deaf from 2000 to 2014, was elected to Parliament in 1996. [57]
XXIV (iii). The State shall [...] promote the development of a sign language for the deaf.
— National Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy, Constitution of Uganda
The federal government does not recognize any language, spoken or signed, as an official language. However, several U.S. universities accept American Sign Language credit to meet their foreign-language requirements. [58] In some states, the study of American Sign Language is eligible for foreign language credit at the high school level. In 2015, California became the first US state to legislate language development milestone guidance pertaining to children whose first language is a signed language. [59]
Although Uruguay has no "official" languages, Uruguayan Sign Language (Spanish : Lengua de señas uruguaya, or LSU), was legally recognised as the language of deaf persons on 10 July 2001. [60]
In the 2008 law 18.437 (Ley General de Educación, 12 December 2008), LSU is considered (with Uruguayan Spanish and Uruguayan Portuguese) a mother tongue of Uruguayan citizens. In policy documents of the Comisión de Políticas Lingüísticas en la Educación Pública (Public Education Language Policy Commission, part of the Administración Nacional de Educación Pública or ANEP), it is proposed that LSU be the principal language of deaf education.[ full citation needed ]
Venezuelan Sign Language was recognised in the country's constitution on 12 November 1999.[ citation needed ]
The Zimbabwean sign languages, grouped as "sign language", are recognised in the 2013 Constitution of Zimbabwe as one of the sixteen "officially recognised languages of Zimbabwe". [61]
Belgium is a federal state comprising three communities and three regions that are based on four language areas. For each of these subdivision types, the subdivisions together make up the entire country; in other words, the types overlap.
French Sign Language is the sign language of the deaf in France and French-speaking parts of Switzerland. According to Ethnologue, it has 100,000 native signers.
The Dutch Language Union is an international regulatory institution that governs issues regarding the Dutch language. It is best known for its spelling reforms which are promulgated by member states, grammar books, the Green Booklet and its support of Dutch language courses and studies worldwide. It was founded on a treaty concluded between the Netherlands and Belgium on 9 September 1980. Suriname has been an associate member of the Taalunie since 2004.
The Flemish Movement is an umbrella term which encompasses various political groups in the Belgian region of Flanders and, less commonly, in French Flanders. Ideologically, it encompasses groups which have sought to promote Flemish culture and the Dutch language as well as those seeking greater political autonomy for Flanders within Belgium. It also encompassed nationalists who seek the secession of Flanders from Belgium, either through outright independence or unification with the Netherlands.
The European Union (EU) has 24 official languages, of which three – English, French and German – have the higher status of "procedural" languages of the European Commission. Irish previously had the lower status of "treaty language" before being upgraded to an official and working language in 2007. However, a temporary derogation was enforced until 1 January 2022. The three procedural languages are those used in the day-to-day workings of the institutions of the EU. The designation of Irish as a "treaty language" meant that only the treaties of the European Union were translated into Irish, whereas Legal Acts of the European Union adopted under the treaties did not have to be. Luxembourgish and Turkish, which have official status in Luxembourg and Cyprus, respectively, are the only two official languages of EU member states that are not official languages of the EU. In 2023, the Spanish government requested that its co-official languages Catalan, Basque, and Galician be added to the official languages of the EU.
The Flemish Parliament constitutes the legislative power in Flanders for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and as a cultural community of Belgium.
In Belgium, there are 27 municipalities with language facilities, which must offer linguistic services to residents in Dutch, French, or German in addition to their single official languages. All other municipalities – with the exception of those in the bilingual Brussels region – are monolingual and only offer services in their official languages, either Dutch or French.
The Flemish Community is one of the three institutional communities of Belgium, established by the Belgian constitution and having legal responsibilities only within the precise geographical boundaries of the Dutch-language area and of the bilingual area of Brussels-Capital. Unlike in the French Community of Belgium, the competences of the Flemish Community have been unified with those of the Flemish Region and are exercised by one directly elected Flemish Parliament based in Brussels.
Irish Sign Language is the sign language of Ireland, used primarily in the Republic of Ireland. It is also used in Northern Ireland, alongside British Sign Language (BSL). Irish Sign Language is more closely related to French Sign Language (LSF) than to BSL, though it has influence from both languages. It has influenced sign languages in Australia and South Africa, and has little relation to either spoken Irish or English. ISL is unique among sign languages for having different gendered versions due to men and women being taught it at different schools all over Ireland.
A national language is a language that has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a nation. There is little consistency in the use of this term. One or more languages spoken as first languages in the territory of a country may be referred to informally or designated in legislation as national languages of the country. National languages are mentioned in over 150 world constitutions.
South African Sign Language is the primary sign language used by deaf people in South Africa. The South African government added a National Language Unit for South African Sign Language in 2001. SASL is not the only manual language used in South Africa, but it is the language that is being promoted as the language to be used by the Deaf in South Africa, although Deaf peoples in South Africa historically do not form a single group.
Flemish Sign Language is a deaf sign language of Belgium. It is closely related to French Belgian Sign Language, but they are now generally recognized as distinct languages. VGT is estimated to include around 6,000 sign-language users.
Kenyan Sign Language is a sign language is used by the deaf community in Kenya and Somalia. It is used by over half of Kenya's estimated 600,000 deaf population. There are some dialect differences between Kisumu, Mombasa and Somalia.
Dutch Sign Language is the predominant sign language used by deaf people in the Netherlands.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Belgium are regarded as some of the most progressive in Europe and the world. In 2023, ILGA-Europe ranked Belgium as second in the European Union for LGBT rights protection, behind Malta.
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica.
The Francization of Brussels refers to the evolution, over the past two centuries, of this historically Dutch-speaking city into one where French has become the majority language and lingua franca. The main cause of this transition was the rapid, compulsory assimilation of the Flemish population, amplified by immigration from France and Wallonia.
The Peeters directive, officially Circular BA 97/22 of 16 December 1997 concerning the use of languages in municipal councils of the Dutch language area, is a circulaire of the Flemish government regulating the use of languages in municipal councils in the Flemish Region (Belgium), where the sole official language is Dutch. The directive is more in particular aimed at the municipalities with language facilities bordering the Brussels Capital-Region. It stipulates that each and every time French-speakers deal with the government, they must explicitly ask for their documents to be in French.
Flemish people or Flemings are a Germanic ethnic group native to Flanders, Belgium, who speak Flemish Dutch. Flemish people make up the majority of Belgians, at about 60%.
Flemish (Vlaams) is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch, Belgian Dutch, or Southern Dutch. Flemish is native to the region known as Flanders in northern Belgium; it is spoken by Flemings, the dominant ethnic group of the region. Outside of Belgium Flanders, it is also spoken to some extent in French Flanders and the Dutch Zeelandic Flanders.
Die 'erkenning' omvat hierbij de drie betekennissen van het woord: (1) de Vlaamse overheid bevestigt de juistheid van het feit dat de Vlaamse Gebarentaal de taal is van de Dovengemeenschap in Vlaanderen, (2) de Vlaamse overheid aanvaardt het bestaan van die taal ook op juridisch vlak en behandelt ze als dustanig en (3) de Vlaamse overheid uit haar waardering voor deze taal.
I am pleased to announce formal recognition for both British and Irish Sign Languages in Northern Ireland.
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