Abstract
Representing Sign Languages with SignWriting: evolution of SW on the basis of the users' requirements of representation
Of all the systems for representing Sign Languages (SL), SignWriting (SW) seems the only one suitable to write and transcribe them. This article presents the different evolutions of SW, which follow two parallel and complementary directions. The first direction is "systematic": strict combinatorial rules must be applied to each new element to be represented, which lead to the automatic generation of hundreds of new glyphs; these changes are done by the creators/managers of SW. The other line of evolution is determined by the users who, while using SW, feel the need to satisfy new representation requirements, and therefore “invent” new glyphs (graphically coherent with the system); once accepted by the users community, they will be “multiplied” by the creators/managers of SW. Between 1995 and 2010, these two paths led SW to pass from about 4000 to about 40000 glyphs. Luckily, the cognitive impact of this exorbitant number of glyphs is offset by the rigorous regularity of the system.
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