Sign language of Ireland, used primarily in the Republic of Ireland
Irish Sign Language
Teanga Chomharthaíochta na hÉireann
Native to
Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland
Native speakers
5,000 deaf (2014)[1] 45,000 hearing signers
Language family
Francosign
Irish Sign Language
Dialects
Australian Irish Sign Language
Official status
Official language in
Republic of Ireland
Language codes
ISO 639-3
isg
Glottolog
iris1235
The ISL manual/fingerspelling alphabet
Irish Sign Language (ISL, Irish: Teanga Chomharthaíochta na hÉireann) is the sign language of Ireland, used primarily in the Republic of Ireland. It is also used in Northern Ireland, alongside British Sign Language (BSL). Irish Sign Language is more closely related to French Sign Language (LSF) than to BSL, though it has influence from both languages. It has influenced sign languages in Australia and South Africa, and has little relation to either spoken Irish or English. ISL is unique among sign languages for having different gendered versions due to men and women being taught it at different schools all over Ireland.[2]
^Irish Sign Language at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
IrishSignLanguage (ISL, Irish: Teanga Chomharthaíochta na hÉireann) is the signlanguage of Ireland, used primarily in the Republic of Ireland. It is...
Northern IrelandSignlanguage (NISL) is a signlanguage used mainly by deaf people in Northern Ireland. NISL is described as being related to IrishSign Language...
British SignLanguage (BSL) is a signlanguage used in the United Kingdom and is the first or preferred language among the deaf community in the UK. While...
are a number of languages used in Ireland. Since the late 18th century, English has been the predominant first language, displacing Irish. A large minority...
(LSFB), IrishSignLanguage (ISL), American SignLanguage (ASL), Quebec (also known as French Canadian) SignLanguage (LSQ), Brazilian SignLanguage (LSB...
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Australian IrishSignLanguage or AISL is a minority signlanguage in Australia. As a Francosign language, it is related to French SignLanguage as opposed...
and the Celtic languages, Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh and, as a revived language with few speakers, Cornish. British SignLanguage is also used. There...
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status, with services in the language provided by public authorities. Northern IrelandSignLanguage and IrishSignLanguage have also been recognised with...
perhaps three hundred signlanguages in use around the world today. The number is not known with any confidence; new signlanguages emerge frequently through...
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attracting English- and Irish-speakers alike. There is also an Irishlanguage instructor, appointed every year by the Ireland Canada University Foundation...
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000 people used other signlanguages at home in 2021. There is a small community of people who use Australian IrishSignLanguage. Norf'k-Pitcairn, a creole...
grammar and syntax of oral languages in a gestural-visual form—that is, signed versions of oral languages. Unlike the signlanguages that have evolved naturally...
American SignLanguage (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant signlanguage of deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone...
languages as working languages). Irish previously had the lower status of "treaty language" before being upgraded to an official and working language...
status of the Irishlanguage has remained high in the Republic of Ireland from foundation. This reflects the dominance of the language in Irish cultural and...
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Sign Language (TİD), and perhaps Ghardaia SignLanguage. Many other signlanguages, such as IrishSignLanguage (ISL), have unclear origins. In the Middle...
the Gaeltacht, where only the Irishlanguage is used on signs. Signs in Ireland are prescribed under the Traffic Signs Manual (TSM) issued by the Department...
where IrishSignLanguage (ISL) is commonly used, ISL is still common among many older deaf people from Catholic families. IrishSignLanguage (ISL) has...
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