What you need to know:
Namesigns are signs that are used as people's names. They are
specific signs that refer to specific people.
If you spend enough time in the Deaf community eventually you will
receive a name sign from your Deaf friends. You should not
make up your own name sign. It is best to get your name sign
from a skilled native signer who is familiar with the Deaf people in
your area and knows whether a particular name sign is already being
used.
Which
is to say, traditionally "Hearing people" should not give themselves name
signs. Instead they should get their name sign from a Deaf person
skilled in ASL and active in the Deaf Community.
This helps insure
that the new name sign doesn't conflict with existing local name signs.
Discussion notes:
An ASL teacher writes:
Three important things to know about name signs:
1. Name signs are given by a Deaf person. Discuss difference
between deaf
and Deaf.
In some cases a hearing person has to do the giving of a name sign.
A mainstreamed Deaf ed teacher in this instance. But that teacher must
be aware of the rules.
2. Name signs are either arbitrary or descriptive.
3. "Combined" name signs are not acceptable.
-------------------
Question: What's an example of a combined name sign that
breaks the rules?
--------------------
Answer:
(Name on file: explains:)
"A combined name sign is a combination of an initialized sign name
and a description--i.e. someone named Alejandrina with curly long
hair might have the "500" handshape name waving down her head and it
would be fine--she could also have an "A" handshape on the chin and
it would be fine--but making the same down the head movement to show
the waves with an "A" hand shape would breach the ASL rule of name
signing. Basically that is very much a SEEism."
Combo name signs are not encouraged in
(traditional) Deaf Culture:
A native Deaf signer sent the following:
A "combo name sign" is describing a person's physical feature or
personality with a handshape corresponding to the first letter of
person's name. For example:
Paul "P" as in sign for laugh: the handshape P. On side of the mouth
as if you're signing laugh. (That's a combined sign and a no-no)
Laura "L" as in having long eyelashes: the handshape L in a sweeping
motion near the eye. (Combined)
Bev "B" as in "happy". (Combined)
Instead stick to either descriptive namesigns WITHOUT the manual alphabet
letter, (for example, it's ok to use a bent 5:HS as a name sign for Missy who has curly
hair),
OR
Stick to arbitrary with the first letter of person's name without
meaning (for example- the letter N-shaken in space in
front of the signer. )
Many native Deaf are particularly sensitive to combined signs.
The use of combo namesigns is like saying that ASL language
rules are insignificant and/or that the person is "hearing
minded." (Not familiar with the way Deaf do things.)
Bill's comments:
The definition of a rule, is
"having to do things in a certain way."
If you want to be socially acceptable you have to do things
in a certain way.
Social acceptability is a moving target.
In general, the behaviors that are engaged in by
high status members of a community are
considered desirable and/or acceptable.
ASL is very popular now, but would you believe
that at one time, knowing a lot of signed English was
actually a source of pride and considered (by
some people) "desirable" in the Deaf community
because it supposedly indicated that the person
was educated? During this period of time
(around the 70's) some Deaf college instructors
chose to teach "signed English" in
their classes because
they thought it was the right "thing to do." Then they would go home
and switch to more visually effective and
efficient signing (ASL)!
Then in the 1980's we saw a huge change and ASL
started gaining popularity in college classrooms."
This was largely due to seeds planted in the
1960's wherein people began analyzing ASL and
defining its patterns and rules. We have come a
long way but we are still defining and
clarifying those rules today.
As a general rule, "combo" namesigns are
considered "inappropriate" by certain skilled
native Deaf signers.
Ask yourself "Why?"
Why are "combo namesigns" becoming increasingly
unpopular and/or looked down upon by many in the
core segment of the Deaf community?
There are a few reasons:
1. Combo signs are often simplistic. Take a
person's initial and attach it to the sign for a
characteristic of that person. Doing so
doesn't take much thought nor "skill" in the
language.
2. Combo signs share a similarity with an aspect
of "signed English" in that they initialize an
ASL sign and link it to an English word (the
person's "English" name).
3. As more and more skilled native ASL signers
turn away from combo namesigns such signs become
increasingly passé (outmoded, behind the times).
That's how language works.
If enough skilled native Deaf keep doing
"anything" long enough, often enough, it
generally becomes popular in the community and and a new rule is formed.
--Bill
In an interview one Deaf person pointed out these three
reasons why combo namesigns are not popular:
1. Deep seated values based on appreciation of and respect
for the type of signing done by native ASL users.
2. A recognition that excessive initialization tends to be
used by novice or low level signers.
3. Combo signs are laborious and cumbersome or just simple
like the visual representation of
fingernails-on-the-chalkboard effect.
Now, combine both of sentences and see that we are
talking about very similar things:
Concept: ...deep seated values based on appreciation of and
respect for the type of signing done by native ASL users.
Concept: ...grammatical rules apply to name signs because human
brains are programmed to visually effective and efficient
signing.
Combined viewpoint: Grammar rules emerge according to deep seated values based on appreciation
of and respect for the type of signing done by native ASL users
because it is visually effective and efficient.
ASL grammar rules do not exist just because "a
Deaf person feels like it."
Rather, "We signs things a certain way because Deaf people do
it that way, and they do it that way because they, feel like it,
and they feel like it because that way is efficient and effective."