Sign Language Trivia 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is a 'classifier' in ASL?
- A ranking system for sign language proficiency
- A handshape that represents a category of objects or their movement (Correct answer)
- A grammar rule that organizes sentence structure
- A fingerspelled word used to label a new sign
Correct answer: A handshape that represents a category of objects or their movement
Classifiers are specific handshapes that represent objects, people, or animals and can show their location, movement, and interaction within a signed sentence.
Question 2: What does 'ASL gloss' refer to?
- A shiny finish applied to sign language instructional materials
- A written representation of ASL using English words in capital letters (Correct answer)
- The emotional tone added to a sign through facial expression
- A technique for making signs more visually smooth
Correct answer: A written representation of ASL using English words in capital letters
ASL gloss is a written notation system where ASL signs are represented by capitalized English words in the order they would appear in ASL, not in English word order.
Question 3: Which country's sign language is most closely related to ASL?
- British Sign Language (BSL)
- Australian Sign Language (Auslan)
- French Sign Language (LSF) (Correct answer)
- Mexican Sign Language (LSM)
Correct answer: French Sign Language (LSF)
ASL is most closely related to French Sign Language (LSF) because Laurent Clerc, a deaf French teacher, helped establish American deaf education in 1817 and brought LSF with him.
Question 4: What is 'mouth morpheme' in ASL?
- The lip movements that mimic English words while signing
- Specific mouth movements that function as grammatical modifiers in ASL (Correct answer)
- The shape of the mouth when producing certain handshapes
- Mouthing words silently while using Signed Exact English
Correct answer: Specific mouth movements that function as grammatical modifiers in ASL
Mouth morphemes are non-speech mouth movements (not English words) that carry grammatical meaning in ASL, such as 'mm' for normal or comfortable, or 'th' for careless action.
Question 5: What does the sign language term 'CODA' stand for?
- Community of Deaf Adults
- Child of Deaf Adults (Correct answer)
- Certificate of Deaf Advocacy
- Council on Deaf Awareness
Correct answer: Child of Deaf Adults
CODA stands for Child of Deaf Adults and refers to hearing individuals who grew up with deaf parents and are often native ASL users.
Question 6: In ASL, what does the 'non-manual marker' of raised eyebrows typically indicate?
- A negative statement
- A wh-question (who, what, when, where, why)
- A yes/no question (Correct answer)
- Extreme emotion or emphasis
Correct answer: A yes/no question
In ASL, raised eyebrows accompanied by a slight head tilt forward are the grammatical marker for yes/no questions, while furrowed brows mark wh-questions.
Question 7: What is the significance of Alexander Graham Bell in deaf history?
- He invented the first TTY device for deaf communication
- He was a strong opponent of sign language and advocate for oral education (Correct answer)
- He founded the National Association of the Deaf
- He co-founded the American School for the Deaf
Correct answer: He was a strong opponent of sign language and advocate for oral education
Alexander Graham Bell actively opposed sign language, advocated for oral-only education for the deaf, and pushed for policies against deaf people marrying each other.
Sign Language Trivia 3
What is a 'classifier' in ASL?