Also see: "Name Signs"
Topic: Name Signs
Context: Deaf Community and Culture
Name Sign Definition: A "name sign" is a sign* that is commonly associated with
or used to refer to a specific person, place, or organization. *(A sign
language "sign" is an articulatory bundle of information (produced with one or
both hands held in a specific shape or series of shapes, moved in a specific
way, at a specific location or series of locations, at a specific orientation or
series of orientations, and associated with a specific meaning or range of
meanings.)
Example: A "V"-hand touched to the temple is a name sign associated with "Dr.
Bill Vicars."*
Question: What is the significance of name signs in Deaf culture?
Response: Name signs provide a convenient way to identify and refer to people,
places, and organizations. Name signs facilitate connection between members of
the Deaf Community. Some name signs are associated with a person's
characteristics thus providing easy conversation starting points. The naming
process allows for camaraderie building and/or generally (but not always) good
natured, playful, or humorous interactivity.
Question: Can two people have the same name sign?
Response: More than one person can have the same name sign but typically not within the same social circles.
If someone new moves into a local Deaf Community who uses the same sign as an
existing member of that community one of them typically changes their name sign
enough to eliminate confusion. Usually (but not always) it is the new person who
changes their name sign. Exceptions to this might be if the person were
older or more active and well-known (or famous) in the larger Deaf world -- that
person may end up retaining their name sign through no effort of their own but
rather the sheer numbers of individuals in the community each choosing to
associate the existing name sign with the well-known person.
Question: Do all members of the Deaf Community have name signs?
Response: All members of the Deaf Community do not have name signs. Some people
have short names that are easy to fingerspell. Some people have simply rejected
name signs. Some people have not been members of the community long enough to
receive a name sign. Some people have relinquished their name sign due to having
moved to a new community where someone is already using the same name sign.
Question: Are their any famous name signs?
Response: There are some very well known name signs. Numerous Deaf actors are
famous and thus have well-known name signs. Many historical figures (both in and
out of the Deaf Community) such as Thomas Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc have
well-known name signs. There are typically well-known name signs for the current
and recent past presidents of the country in which the Deaf community exists.
Question: How do you get a name sign?
Response: Generally you should get a name sign by interacting enough in the Deaf
community that those around you get tired of spelling your name and decide to
assign you a name sign.
Question: Who can assign a name sign?
Response: Generally name signs should be assigned by socially active Deaf adults
who are highly skilled signers and who are familiar with most of the existing
name signs Deaf people in their local community as well as commonly known name
signs from the larger Deaf community. This is important so that a newcomer is
assigned a name sign that isn't offensive, conforms to societal norms, and
doesn't conflict with existing names. Parents of Deaf children commonly assign
their own children name signs. This is best done in consultation with adult
members of the local Deaf Community -- if not -- the parents and child should
remain flexible and open to the idea that the name sign may have an issue and
may need to be changed later upon entry into the Deaf Community. Some teachers
of the Deaf commonly assign name signs to their students who may not already
have name signs. It is hoped that such teachers of the Deaf are highly skilled
in sign language and familiar with the name signs in use in the Deaf community.
Question: Can name signs change over your lifetime?
Response: Yes. It is common for people to have several name signs
throughout their lives.
Question: Can you make up your own?
Response: It is advised that you instead strive to interact enough with the Deaf
community that those around you will spontaneously assign you a name sign. After
you have developed some genuine (non-superficial) relationships in the Deaf
community it is likely you will be granted a name sign. If not, you can hint to
a friend in the community that you would like a name sign.
Question: Do ASL students eventually make up one / get one, or is that cultural
appropriation and only for Deaf people?
Response: ASL students are ill-equipped to be choosing their own name signs. Due
to lack of experience and skill ASL students do not know the spectrum of
existing name signs. It is not uncommon for a well-intentioned student to come
up with a name sign that is a swear word, private body part, drug-related term,
sexual process, or some other potentially embarrassing or inappropriate sign.
Question: Can Hearing parents of Deaf children give their own children name
signs?
Answer: Think of the naming of a Deaf child as a process not an event. If
you are the parent of a Deaf child, do your best to check with your local Deaf
Community regarding possible name signs for your child. If you live in an
area where there are few or no Deaf you may choose to go ahead and assign your
own child a name sign. It is recommended that you think of it as a
temporary-home-name-sign rather than a permanent name sign. Do your best
to come up with a name sign that you feel good about but think of it as being
for family use and of a temporary nature. Then when you or your child has
the opportunity to associate with adult skilled signers who are active in the
Deaf Community you can ask them to either confirm that the name sign fits -- or
that it perhaps might need some adjustment. If a home-name-sign needs adjustment
it can often be moved a little or modified in some way to be similar to the
previous version but appropriate for use in the Deaf Community.
Question: Does someone who becomes part of the Deaf community later in life
(becoming Deaf or getting deeply involved otherwise via work or marriage or
similar) get a name sign?
Response: Deep and sustained involvement in the Deaf community is almost always
accompanied by the granting of a name sign by one's associates. If your name is
short and easily spelled then you may not receive a name sign. Even if your name
is spelled it is likely to go through a lexicalization process wherein it is
shortened and morphed to become easier to spell. For example, the name sign of a
Deaf person named "Nick" morphed into "N3" (an "N" followed by an extremely
loose "K" hand that looks somewhat like a mutated "3").
Question: Is the bestowal of a name sign a significant event (like baptism) or
is it just totally for functionality/convenience?
Response: Typically a large party is held, attended by as many significant
individuals in that person's life as possible -- accompanied by gifts, toasts,
extensive drinking, and dancing. (I'm KIDDING! That is a JOKE!) Name sign
bestowal is generally a spontaneous happening. Sometimes it arises out of
someone describing someone else and that description becoming more and more
concise until it becomes a single sign. Sometimes a name sign arises from
someone teasing someone else and it sticks. (I know a fellow with the name sign
"DIAPER.") Sometimes a name sign starts as an insulting way to refer to someone.
(There is a rather well known person whose name sign is a compound of SWEET-B_TCH.
The person has embraced the sign and some others wish it was their name sign).
Sometimes a name sign arises from the person's initials becoming more and more
commonly used in place of spelling out the name. So, no -- the receiving of a
name sign is generally not a big "event." However it is not-uncommon for some
ASL students to return home from a Deaf Event and squeal with delight to their
roommate that they have finally received a name sign.
Those who have some real-world experience with the "realities" of raising a
child have questionsthat are valid and need to be addressed in a realistic,
balanced way.
Deaf children do need names for the people in their lives. They do! And if the
family isn't surrounded by the Deaf Community that doesn't change the fact that
Deaf children need names for the people in their lives. Not providing names for
the people in a Deaf child's life would be a form of "language deprivation." So,
while a Hearing parent very much "should" seek out input from skilled adult Deaf
local signers if at all possible -- in the absence of the availability of such
input the parent should go ahead and provide the child with language.
--------------------------------------
A person commented in an online thread that a person's English name was their
"actual name."
I'd like you to reflect on that concept of "actual name." That statement is very
Hearing / English-centric. It promotes "English" or spoken language as being
better or more "real" than ASL or a signed name. I would suggest to you that if
a (Deaf) person were in a court of law and was being cross-examined he/she/they
might use name signs to refer to various people in their testimony and that
testimony would carry as much weight as a spoken testimony using spoken English
names.
I would suggest to you that if a (Deaf) person were in a court of law and was
being cross-examined he/she/they might use name signs to refer to various people
in their testimony and that testimony would carry as much weight as a spoken
testimony using spoken English names.
Think of a person's signature. Many people's signature looks more like an
indecipherable scrawl or a graphic (as in graffiti). The signature (the picture
version of their name) is actually more legitimate than the spoken version of
their name for the production of legal documents. It is common for a person's
signature to be so far removed from spoken English that (if you didn't know the
person) you could not decipher their name into spoken English. Yet again, it is
the visual depiction (scrawl) of the name that carries more weight than the
English version of the name.
Another thought would be to watch the movie "Dances With Wolves" and ask
yourself what the main character's "actual" name was at the end of the movie.
About Name Signs
- By Belinda Vicars
Here are some facts that you need to know.
Name signs, for many reasons, are given by members of the Deaf community.
Name signs are used to talk ABOUT the other person. I never use the name sign to
address the person directly. It's always used to talk about someone.
Existing signs should not be used as name signs. For example, the sign for CHAIR
cannot be used for the name HEIDI. That creates confusion.
Most Deaf can tell when a hearing person has created a name sign. One of the
more memorable stories is when a parent gave their child Patty the name sign "P"
on the nose because of her cute button nose. "P" on the nose actually means pee
or penis. So having Deaf input is valuable.
Name signs are treasured in the Deaf community, but it is not necessarily a sign
of honor. Many Deaf will end up with 3 or 4 throughout their lifetime. I've had
3 so far.
When you move to a new Deaf community, sometimes your name sign will conflict
with someone who is already in the community and has been there longer (hence
the reason for my most recent name sign). This is only true if you are involved
in the Deaf community.
And yes, parents do give their Deaf child a name sign. In general, I'm okay with
that - BUT, it is wise to have Deaf input on this so that you are not naming
your child "penis."
Or something else equally embarrassing.
And last, just because you know a Deaf person, it doesn't mean that you'll get a
name sign. Again, it depends on how often your name pops up in a conversation.
My husband and I recently gave a relative a name sign, and we've been married
for thirty years. The name sign does not indicate that we've suddenly became
more affectionate with the said relative, but because due familial circumstances
we are talking about that relative more. So to make conversation easier, in a
matter of a few seconds, we created name sign. That relative will probably never
know about that name sign. Never. It was for Bill and I, that's it. We waited
THIRTY years to give that relative their name sign.
Some name signs are temporary. Interpreting situations, for example, if an
interpreter does not know the name sign of someone famous (or if one does not
exist), that person will create a name sign for that particular interpreting
assignment. And then the name sign disappears. It's not permanent thing.
The only time a name sign becomes permanent (of a public or famous person) is
when a Deaf person has created one and then if another Deaf person likes it and
spreads it around. If it gains traction, then it becomes a name sign. If it
does, it dies a quick death in the name sign graveyard.
Too much hullabaloo is made over name signs. They are not the honor that most
people think. It's a convenience. Sometimes is a gift. But to receive one, you
have to spend time in the Deaf community.
- Belinda (Bee) Vicars, MFA
QUESTION: An ASL hero writes:
Hi Dr Bill,
I usually ask my questions via YouTube but since this isn't something other
people are likely to be interested in, I thought I would email you directly.
Hope that's ok.
I have a new (hearing) granddaughter (first grandchild) who will be raised
trilingual (English, Spanish and ASL) by two hearing parents. I sign as does my
deaf interpreter brother-in-law and my hearing sign language interpreter sister.
ASL and Deaf culture have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember
and my son's as well.
Anyway, I want to give the baby a name sign. Her name is Beckett and of course I
think she is the cutest thing in the world. I was thinking of the sign for cute,
but with 4 fingers (like a 'b') instead of 2, but wanted to make sure that isn't
ready a sign for something that we wouldn't want to call her. I already
know the sign for b█tch,
so I know it's not that. Ha Ha.
Can you advise?
Thank you.
████████████
(name redacted to protect the person's identity)
Hello
██████,
If you do a four fingered cute it ends up looking like a variation of "SWEET."
(The general sign for SWEET tends to use an open thumb though -- but you might
see it with a tucked thumb even though that is a bit awkward).
There is (IMHO) nothing wrong with calling her "SWEET" as her name sign. Some
people might argue with that -- whatever.
Sort of amusing -- an interpreter named "Betty Colonomos" is commonly known in
the Deaf Community by her name sign of "SWEET-B█TCH."
A number of other interpreters are apparently rather jealous of that name sign.
Ha!
You could do the motion sideways instead of up and down as a way to distinguish
the sign.
I'd also encourage you to reach out to your Deaf Interpreter brother-in-law to
brainstorm regarding potential name signs. If nothing else it would provide an
opportunity to connect.
Also, please do NOT feel constrained to use a "B" as the handshape.
By way of clarification, the term "Deaf Interpreter" literally means a Deaf
person who works or serves as an interpreter. An "interpreter for the Deaf" is
different from a Deaf interpreter. (I figured I'd mention that just in case.)
Warm regards,
+ Bill
________________________
William G. Vicars, Ed.D.