Many signs in American Sign Language are “iconic”. “Iconic” signs mean that they visually look like the definition they’re trying to convey: the sign for CAT looks like a cat’s whiskers, the sign for DRINK visually represents a person drinking from a cup.
Iconic words are very rare in English: onomatopoeia* are one of the only cases of iconicity in English. This is an aspect of language that is unique to signs! Sometimes the signs may seem blunt or even rude, but remember that iconicity is not negative. The signs for FAT or SHORT are used in everyday conversation, but don’t typically carry the same connotation that they do in English. Keep “iconicity” in mind while you learn new signs, and don’t be surprised when something looks like just what it means!
*on•o•mat•o•poe•ia
ˌänəˌmadəˈpēə,ˌänəˌmädəˈpēə/
noun
noun: onomatopoeia
-the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g., cuckoo, sizzle ).
-the use of onomatopoeia for rhetorical effect.
Donations may be allocated to support Certified Deaf Interpreters, DeafBlind interpreters and support, ASL interpreters from marginalized communities, as well as fund requests for event access for Black Lives Matter (BLM) and various marginalized community events.
Are the classes for deaf children and their hearing parents? And may I know the sign language instructors’ names as the folks often ask me that question? Thanks for your time!
Our current class offerings are community classes for adults and baby sign classes. We do work with our clients to provide private lessons and many of them have Deaf family members. We have a list of instructors that work with us and we do our best to match them up with our clients according to location and scheduling. Feel free to email us with more questions.