Deaf FTers?

Old Dec 23, 2007, 6:21 am
  #16  
 
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Welcome Kiwisurfer,

I have a good friend who is from NZ and is Deaf. He is living here in US. I agree fully, that being Deaf doesn't really require much in the way of "special support.
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Old Dec 23, 2007, 4:13 pm
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Originally Posted by DeafFlyer
Welcome Kiwisurfer,

I have a good friend who is from NZ and is Deaf. He is living here in US. I agree fully, that being Deaf doesn't really require much in the way of "special support.
Please forgive my ignorance, I'm still a new student of Deaf culture. How do you and your friend communicate with each other? And a related question for you or anyone else - is the sign language in NZ and Australia the same or similar to BSL?

My girlfriend has such a knack for languages in general (fluent French, muddles along in Spanish & German, and blows me out of the water with ASL) that I'm going to try and pick up a BSL and a French sign language book in the next two weeks while I'm abroad. Thought it might be fun to at least know the very basics, especially fingerspelling, in more than one language.
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Old Dec 23, 2007, 8:45 pm
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LSF (French) is closer to ASL than BSL. ASL and BSL are very different. Australian (Auslan) is very similar to BSL and they can converse with each other easily.
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Old Dec 23, 2007, 10:41 pm
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Ok. I'm learning ASL through my local community college so I'm aware of the origins of ASL with LSF as well as what the names Gallaudet, Clerc and Epee mean. Good to know that Auslan and BSL are similar.

I seem to recall seeing an Irish sign language book last spring in Galway which had ASL style one-handed alphabet. I would have thought this would be more closely aligned with BSL. Then again,there's that hate-hate relationship with the British so perhaps not?
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Old Dec 23, 2007, 11:30 pm
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I have encountered Scots who used one-handed fingerspelling and they came from a very small school in Glasgow. It's not consistent throughout the UK. The Irish "H" is different from ours, but the Scots had the same "H" as ASL. I will never understand the UK.
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Old Dec 24, 2007, 7:40 am
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Originally Posted by ArizonaGuy
Please forgive my ignorance, I'm still a new student of Deaf culture. How do you and your friend communicate with each other? And a related question for you or anyone else - is the sign language in NZ and Australia the same or similar to BSL?
Easy. He knows ASL. I don't know NZ signs but I have been under the impression it is similar to Australian Sign Languge, which is simiilar to BSL. I'm sure Kiwisurfer can confirm or not. I know Danish Sign Language plus many international signs though. I love international conferences with multiple signed languages used.
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Old Dec 24, 2007, 3:54 pm
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Originally Posted by Wiggums
I have encountered Scots who used one-handed fingerspelling and they came from a very small school in Glasgow. It's not consistent throughout the UK. The Irish "H" is different from ours, but the Scots had the same "H" as ASL. I will never understand the UK.
The UK seems quite consistent to me -- all the people from the UK, including all England, Ireland and Scotland, that I've met use the standard BSL/NZSL/Auslan two-hand alphabet.

Originally Posted by DeafFlyer
Easy. He knows ASL. I don't know NZ signs but I have been under the impression it is similar to Australian Sign Languge, which is simiilar to BSL. I'm sure Kiwisurfer can confirm or not. I know Danish Sign Language plus many international signs though. I love international conferences with multiple signed languages used.
NZSL and Auslan are based off BSL with lots of regional variances. Hence Auslan, NZSL and BSL users can easily communicate with each other. There are a few significant differences but it's quite easy to understand and learn BSL/Auslan if you already know NZSL like I do.

I went to the WFD Conference in Spain in July -- did any of you go there?

Regards,
James
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Old Dec 24, 2007, 4:47 pm
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Originally Posted by KiwiSurfer
I went to the WFD Conference in Spain in July -- did any of you go there?

Regards,
James
I think Wiggums did. I didn't go to it, but I have been to other international meetings.
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Old Dec 24, 2007, 6:40 pm
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Can anyone suggest some good sites or message forums pertaining to the international Deaf community? At least a handful of you are clearly well versed as well as well traveled when it comes to this topic. I'm fascinated by it all.
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Old Dec 25, 2007, 1:19 am
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Yeah, I did go to WFD in Spain. Probably the only deaf who flew in "F" on LH with another friend. I felt bad because some were like, "You're in First?!"

I used points for that trip to WFD - stayed at the Westin Palace and got a huge suite. It's all on video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KABgnmwutaw

Sorry I used ASL... I hardly know BSL or NZSL or Auslan.

In regards to Scotland, it was only two people I came across at the deaf Birmingham Film Festival a couple years ago who were using one hand alphabet. Both said they came from Scotland and they were able to use two hands, but preferred one hand. I even slowed down whilst signing with one hand alphabet, but they both said they had been using one hand at a school in Scotland so were accustomed to it and told me to speed up.

I've never met an Irish using two hand alphabet, all I've met used one. Maybe it's North Ireland you're thinking of? I have seen some use one, some use two.
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Old Dec 25, 2007, 1:28 am
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Originally Posted by ArizonaGuy
Can anyone suggest some good sites or message forums pertaining to the international Deaf community? At least a handful of you are clearly well versed as well as well traveled when it comes to this topic. I'm fascinated by it all.
I know there's the Deaflympics in Taipei, Taiwan, that takes place on September 2009.

And I understand there's a "Deaf History International" that has long taken place in Europe. For 2009, it is now taking place in RSA. I will absolutely not step foot in RSA until they stop the slaughter of white farmers. It's nauseating.
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Old Dec 25, 2007, 8:29 am
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Originally Posted by Wiggums
I've never met an Irish using two hand alphabet, all I've met used one. Maybe it's North Ireland you're thinking of? I have seen some use one, some use two.
I think you are right that it is Northern Ireland that uses 2 hands.
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Old Dec 25, 2007, 6:06 pm
  #28  
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Originally Posted by Wiggums
I'm one.
Me, too. I am normally deaf & hard of hearing. I am learning more English skills instead ASL. I can hear good from my left ear but, isn't right ear is terribly. I can speak very well myself but, I am not aware that I can't sign very often. That's why I learned more communication skills but, it is improvable more English skills during the tutoring from my teacher. It's importance that I am learned more English skills than ASL.
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Old Dec 26, 2007, 10:37 am
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Although I know ASL very well, I was raised learning English. I'm grateful for that
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Old Jan 4, 2008, 7:58 am
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Originally Posted by ArizonaGuy
Ok. I'm learning ASL through my local community college so I'm aware of the origins of ASL with LSF as well as what the names Gallaudet, Clerc and Epee mean. Good to know that Auslan and BSL are similar.

I seem to recall seeing an Irish sign language book last spring in Galway which had ASL style one-handed alphabet. I would have thought this would be more closely aligned with BSL. Then again,there's that hate-hate relationship with the British so perhaps not?
Not deaf, but love this interesting thread. I took ASL at Mesa CC in AZ to "keep my calendar year" at ASU when I needed to take some time off to help my family. The class was fun and I got an anecdote from the experience published in Reader's Digest.

For an exam in our sign-language class, we had to attend a group lunch and conduct ourselves as if we were deaf. We could use only sign language and had to pretend we could not hear. We were so persuasive that our two waitresses fell for the charade and began talking freely. Discussing the attractiveness of a certain young man in our class, one waitress suggested the other should ask him for a date. "Don't worry," she pressed. "You can overcome the 'language barrier.'" "Oh, I'm not bothered by that," the other young woman replied. "It's those quick hands that worry me."
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