Plains Indian Sign Language

Extracts of the film taken during the 1930 Conference on PISL conservation.

The Plains Indian sign languages (PISL), also known as Plains Sign Talk,^[3] are various manually coded languages used, or formerly used, by various Plains Nations of the United States and Canada. The best known is Plains Standard Sign Language, a contact language (international auxiliary language) used between these peoples.

History

PISL's antecedents, if any, are unknown, due to lack of written records. But, the earliest records of contact between Europeans and Native Americans of the Gulf Coast region in what is now Texas and northern Mexico note a fully formed sign language already in use by the time of the Europeans' arrival there.^[4] These records include the accounts of Cabeza de Vaca in 1527 and Coronado in 1541.

As a result of several factors, including the massive depopulation and the Americanization of Native North Americans, the number of PISL signers declined from European arrival onward. In 1885, it was estimated that there were over 110,000 "sign-talking Indians", including Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Sioux, Kiowa and Arapaho.^[5] By the 1960s, there remained a "very small percentage of this number".^[5] There are few PISL signers today in the 21st century.^[6]

William Philo Clark, who served in the United States Army on the northern plains during the Indian Wars, was the author of The Indian Sign Language, first published in 1885. The Indian Sign Language with Brief Explanatory Notes of the Gestures Taught Deaf-Mutes in Our Institutions and a Description of Some of the Peculiar Laws, Customs, Myths, Superstitions, Ways of Living, Codes of Peace and War Signs is a comprehensive lexicon of signs, with accompanying insights into indigenous cultures and histories. It remains in print.

Geography

Sign language use has been documented across speakers of at least 37 oral languages in twelve families,^[7] spread across an area of over 2.6 million square kilometres (1 million square miles).^[8] In recent history, it was highly developed among the Crow, Cheyenne, Arapaho and Kiowa, among others, and remains strong among the Crow, Cheyenne and Arapaho.

Each nation used a distinct manually coded language, as was the case in aboriginal Australia. In addition, there was a trade pidgin that may have never been extensively used, or was only used by a well-traveled elite. This contact language may be distinguished as Plains Standard SL, as opposed to the generic term Plains Indian SL for the various ethnic forms. These were reportedly not used by the deaf, who used home sign instead.

Signing may have started in the south, perhaps in northern Mexico or Texas, and only spread into the plains in recent times, though this suspicion may be an artifact of European observation. Sign, or at least contact sign, spread to the Sauk, Fox, Potawatomi, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Caddo after their removal to Oklahoma. Via the Crow, it replaced the divergent Plateau Sign Language among the eastern nations that used it, the Coeur d'Alene, Sanpoil, Okanagan, Thompson, Lakes, Shuswap, and Coleville in British Columbia, with western nations shifting instead to Chinook Jargon.

The various nations with attested use, divided by language family, are:

• Piman: Pima, Papago, and continuing into northern Mexico
• isolates of the Texas coast: Coahuilteco, Tonkawa, Karankawa, Atakapa
• Yuman: Maricopa
• Numic: Paiute, Ute, Comanche, Shoshone
• Tanoan: Kiowa, Taos
• Zuni Pueblo
• Caddoan: Wichita, Pawnee, Arikara
• Athabaskan: Apache (Mescalero, Lipan, Jicarilla, and Kiowa Apache), Sarcee, Beaver
• Algonquian: Blackfoot, Gros Ventre, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Cree, Ojibwa
• Kutenai
• Siouan: Mandan, Crow, Hidatsa, Omaha, Osage, Assinibion, Ponca, Oto, Sioux (Teton, Yankton, Yanktonai, Santee)
• Sahaptian: Nez Perce, Sahaptin, Umatilla, Palus
• Cayuse
• Salish: Kalispel, Coeur d'Alene, Flathead, Spokane, Sanpoil (shifted from the distinct Plateau Sign Language)

A distinct form is also reported from the Wyandot of Ohio.

Supalla reports a clan of Navajos that has several non-ASL-speaking deaf members; both deaf and hearing use a sign language that Supalla says is related to "Old Indian Sign Language".^[9]

Additionally, it is known that there exists a Plains Sign Talk language within the Blackfoot Confederacy. Little is known about the language aside that it is used by Deaf community members as well as by the community at large to pass on "oral" traditions and stories.^[10]

Phonology

There are four basic parameters of PISL sign: the location of the hand, its movement, shape, and orientation:^[11]

• Location—this involves the spacial placement of a sign.^[12] Signs may change meaning when placed in a different location, for example, in front of the face as opposed to in front of the torso.^[13]
• Movement—this involves, as implied, the way the hands move when forming the sign.^[12] For example, in PISL, the signs AFTERNOON and MID-DAY form minimal pairs as they are both formed exactly the same, the only difference being that MID-DAY is stationary and AFTERNOON moves from above the head to the side in an arching motion.^[14][15]
• Handshape—as implied, each sign takes on a certain shape in the hand, called a handshape. The handshapes of signs are a very key parameter. For example, the signs YES and I-KNOW are the same in all parameters except for the handshape; in YES the hand makes the PISL J shape, and in I-KNOW the hand takes the L shape.^[14]
• Orientation—this refers to the orientation of the palm.^[12] This is clearly seen in the PISL signs ABOVE and ADD. Both involve having the left hand act as a base from which the right hand rises, and both have the same location, movement, and handshapes; however, in ABOVE, the non-dominant hand is palm down, and in ADD the non-dominant hand is palm up.^[15]

There may be other parameters, such as facial features. However, these function like suprasegmentals, and the four parameters listed above are the crucial ones.^[12]

Although the parameters of sign are listed separately below, in actuality they co-occur with the other parameters to make a single sign.^[12] It is not clear how many of the differences were distinctive (phonemic).

Handshape

The Bureau of American Ethnology published a glossary of PISL signs that illustrate the handshapes involved.^[16] They assigned them alphabetic letters.

• Fist, thumb in front of fingers (A or B)
• Fist, thumb at side of fingers (C)
• Fingers clenched, thumb touching middle of index finger (D)
• Fingers hooked, thumb touching back tip of index finger (E)
• Fingers hooked, thumb at side of fingers (F)
• Fingers hooked, thumb touching tips of fingers (G)
• Fingers slightly bent, thumb at side tip of index finger (H)
• Fist, except index finger forming hook with thumb holding tip of index finger (I)
• Fist, except index finger fully extended (J, K, or M)
• Fist, except index finger and thumb extended, thumb bends at last joint to form 90 degree angle with index finger (L)
• Fist except index and middle fingers fully extended (N)
• Thumb, index, and middle finger pointing upward and separated, ring finger and pinky curved horizontally (O)
• All fingers and thumb pointing upward and separated, palm cupped (P and Q)
• All fingers and thumb fully extended and separated (R)
• All fingers and thumb fully extended and held together (S and T)
• Fingers gathered to a point, palm cupped, with thumb in the middle (U)
• Fingers slightly bent, thumb at side of index finger (V)
• All fingers and thumb extended, relaxed (Y)

Location

PISL uses the following locations. The various neutral spaces are the most common places for signs to occur.^[13]

Orientation

These are the directions towards which the palm can face.^[13]

• Up
• Down
• Non-dominant side
• Dominant side
• Toward signer
• Away from signer

Movement

The movements below are found in PISL. They may be repeated in certain situations.^[13]

See also

• Plateau Sign Language

References

• Bergmann, Anouschka; Kathleen Currie Hall; Sharon Miriam Ross. "Language Files". USA. Ohio State University, 2007.
• Bureau of American ethnology. "Annual report of the Bureau of American ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian institution". Washington, DC. Government printing office, 1881.
• Cody, Iron Eyes. "Indian Talk". CA. Naturegraph Publishers, Inc, 1970.
• Davis, Jeffrey E. "Hand Talk". USA. Cambridge University Press, 2010.
• Tomkins, William. "Indian Sign Language". Toronto, Ontario. Dover Publications, Inc, 1969

Further reading

• Newell, Leonard E. (1981). A stratificational description of Plains Indian Sign Language. Forum Linguisticum 5: 189-212.
• "Sign Language Among North American Indians Compared With That Among Other Peoples And Deaf-Mutes," First Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1879-1880, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1881, pages 263-552
• Clark, William Philo. 1885. The Indian Sign Language

External links

• "PISL"
• "Indian" Sign Language Dictionary
• "Letter Signs in Plains Indian Sign Language, Image in Harper's Magazine (March 1880)"

Languages of Canada Official languages English French Indigenous languages Algonquian Abenaki Algonquin Blackfoot Cree Innu Malecite-Passamaquoddy Mi'kmaq Munsee Naskapi Ojibwe Ottawa Potawatomi Athabaskan Babine-Witsuwit'en Carrier Chilcotin Chipewyan Dogrib Gwich’in Hän Kaska Nicola Sarcee Sekani Slavey Tagish Tahltan Tutchone Inuit Inuinnaqtun Inuktitut Inupiaq Inuvialuktun Iroquoian Cayuga Mohawk Oneida Onondaga Seneca Tuscarora Wyandot Salishan Bella Coola Comox Halkomelem Lillooet Okanagan Saanich Sechelt Shuswap Squamish Thompson Tsimshianic Gitxsan Nisga'a Tsimshian Coast Southern Wakashan Ditidaht Haisla Heiltsuk-Oowekyala Kwak'wala Nuu-chah-nulth other Beothuk Haida Kutenai Tlingit Pidgins, creoles and mixed Broken Slavey Bungee Chiac Chinook Jargon Labrador Inuit Pidgin French Michif Immigrant languages Gaelic Irish Ukrainian Russian German Hutterite Pennsylvania Plautdietsch Sign languages American Sign Language Quebec Sign Language Inuit Sign Language Plains Indian Sign Language Maritime Sign Language

Languages of the United States English   Dialects of American English African American Vernacular English Appalachian English Baltimore English Boston English Cajun English California English Chicano English Eastern New England English General American English High Tider English Inland Northern American English Miami English Mid-Atlantic American / Delaware Valley English Maine English Midland American English New England Englishes New Mexican Englishes New Orleans English New York City English New York Latino English Northern American English North-Central American English Ozark English Pacific Northwest English Pennsylvania Dutch English Philadelphia English Pittsburgh English Puerto Rican English Southern American English Texan English Tidewater English Transatlantic English Upper Michigan English Western American English Western New England English Yeshiva English Indigenous Languages Language Families Algonquian Caddoan Chinookan Eskimo–Aleut Iroquoian Keresan Maiduan Muskogean Na-Dene Palaihnihan Plateau Penutian Pomoan Salishan Siouan Tanoan Tsimshianic Uto-Aztecan Wakashan Wintuan Yuk-Utian Yuman–Cochimí Chumashan Kalapuyan Living Languages Abenaki Achumawi Ahtna Alabama Aleut Alutiiq Arapaho Arikara Assiniboine Blackfoot Caddo Cahuilla Pamlico Cayuga Central Alaskan Yup'ik Central Pomo Central Siberian Yupik Central Sierra Miwok Cherokee Chevak Cup’ik Cheyenne Chickasaw Choctaw Coast Tsimshian Cocopah Coeur d'Alene Ute-Chemehuevi Columbia-Moses Comanche Cree Crow Dakota Deg Xinag Dena'ina Eastern Pomo Fox Gros Ventre Gwich’in Haida Halkomelem Hän Havasupai–Hualapai Hidatsa Hopi Hupa Inupiat Ipai Jemez Jicarilla Kansa Karuk Kashaya Kathlamet Kawaiisu Kiowa Kitanemuk Klallam Koasati Konkow Koyukon Kumeyaay Kutenai Lakota Tsinúk Lower Tanana Luiseño Lushootseed Mahican Maidu Makah Mandan Maricopa Massachusett Menominee Mescalero-Chiricahua Mi'kmaq Miami-Illinois Mikasuki Mohawk Mohegan-Pequot Mojave Mono Munsee Muscogee Nanticoke Narragansett Navajo Nez Perce Nisenan Nomlaki Nooksack North Straits Salish Northern Paiute O'odham Ojibwe Okanagan Omaha–Ponca Oneida Onondaga Osage Patwin Picuris Potawatomi Powhatan Quapaw Quechan Quiripi Sahaptin Salish Seneca Serrano Shawnee Shoshoni Siuslaw Southeastern Pomo Southern Pomo Southern Sierra Miwok Southern Tiwa Stoney Tanacross Taos Tewa Thompson Tiipai Timbisha Tolowa Tübatulabal Tule-Kaweah Yokuts Tuscarora Twana Unami Upper Chinook Upper Kuskokwim Upper Tanana Valley Yokuts Washo Western Apache Wichita Winnebago Wintu Wyandot Yaqui Yavapai Yuchi Zuni Extinct Languages Apalachee Atsugewi Barbareño Bay Miwok Biloxi Buena Vista Yokuts Cahto Catawba Central Kalapuya Chico Chitimacha Chiwere Coast Miwok Cowlitz Cruzeño Cupeño Erie Etchemin Eyak Gashowu Yokuts Holikachuk Kings River Yokuts Kitsai Klamath Kwalhioqua-Clatskanie Lake Miwok Lipan Loup Lower Chehalis Mattole Mitchigamea Molala Moneton Nawathinehena Neutral Huron Northeastern Pomo Northern Kalapuya Northern Pomo Northern Sierra Miwok Nottoway Obispeño Ofo Palewyami Piro Pueblo Plains Apache Plains Miwok Purisimeño Quinault Susquehannock Tillamook Tongva Tonkawa Tsetsaut Tutelo-Saponi Tututni Upper Chehalis Upper Umpqua Ventureño Wailaki Wenrohronon Woccon Yoncalla Mixed or Trade Languages Chinook Jargon Michif Sign languages American Sign Language Black American Sign Language Hawai'i Sign Language Plains Indian Sign Language Martha's Vineyard Sign Language Sandy River Valley Sign Language Henniker Sign Language Plateau Sign Language Others (number of speakers in 2000 in millions) Spanish (28) Caló (Chicano) New Mexican Puerto Rican Isleño Chinese (2) French (2) Louisiana Cajun Colonial Missouri New England German (1.4) Pennsylvania Dutch Texas Hutterite Tagalog (1.2) Vietnamese (1) Italian (1) Korean (0.9) Russian (0.7) Polish (0.7) Arabic (0.6) Portuguese (0.6) Greek (0.4) Persian (0.3) Serbo-Croatian (0.2) Armenian (0.2) Yiddish (0.2)