Functions of Head and Body Movements in Austrian Sign Language

Andrea Lackner

• Publisher: De Gruyter Mouton
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN:
  9781501516337
• eBook ISBN:
  9781501507755
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Linguistic Semantics
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

Research on nonmanual elements – or 'nonmanuals' – in sign languages has focused on both the possible functions and the occurrence (frequency and form) of these elements in recent years. As a matter of fact, research on nonmanuals is still a quite uncharted territory in Austrian Sign Language (ÖGS) today, which has also initiated the study given.

In order to identify head and body movements in ÖGS, these nonmanuals were determined and analyzed functionally via a new user-oriented methodology. Getting feedback of multiple native signers was a main part of this method. Accordingly, you will find the findings of this study in this volume: various functions such as negation, assertion, interrogativity, conditionality, and many more can be expressed nonmanually. Brand new insights into sign language research are given, as well as astonishing results: even (epistemic) modality can be expressed by particular head and body movements.

1Introduction

1.1Subject matter, research questions, hypotheses, and objectives

Research on nonmanual elements – hereafter ‘nonmanuals’ – in sign languages during recent years has focused on both the possible meanings/functions as well as the occurrence (frequency and form) of these elements. Much research on nonmanuals is done from a typological, cross-linguistic perspective (cf., among others, Zeshan 2006a). In the course of investigating nonmanuals and their possible functions such as interrogativity and negation, some sign language researchers have found that articulations by the head or body are possible means of encoding linguistic information (cf. 2.2).

Building on this, the present book presents an investigation of functions expressed by head and body movements/positions2 in Austrian Sign Language (ÖGS). After various signed texts were recorded, a selection of these were annotated with the Deaf annotators focusing on the form and possible function of each head and body movement. Subsequently, these annotations as well as the contexts in which the movements co-occurred were analyzed.

Some ÖGS head movements have already been analyzed in previous studies. Those which have been described more comprehensively are ‘chin down’3 for polar questions, ‘chin up’ and/ or ‘head forward’ for content questions (cf. Schalber 2002, 2006), and headshakes for negation (Hofstätter & Stalzer 2001; Skant et al. 2002: 110–102, 183–235; Stalzer 2014). As a matter of fact, the data in this study show that first of all, many more head and body movements exist in ÖGS and secondly, that a movement along a body plane like ‘headshakes’ can have many different forms and meanings/functions. Thus, the overall research questions, derived from the above-mentioned subject matter, are as follows:

–Which head and body movements and positions exist in Austrian Sign Language?

–To what extent are there different variations of a form that express the same meaning or function? And conversely, to what extent does one form possess different meanings or functions?

Consequently, the main goal of the book is to describe the observed head and body movements and illustrate in which contexts they occur. In doing so, the perspective on head and body movements along a plane becomes more differentiated, such that directions around an axis and along a plane constitute the main features of each head/body movement. However, there are additional features included, such as the size or speed of production (cf. 3.2.4). The assumption is, for instance, that ‘headshake’ is not a sufficiently meaningful label (i.e. all headshakes are not the same), nor is ‘head forward’ (i.e. all instances in which the head is positioned forward are not the same).

With regard to this research objective, I hypothesize that

–ÖGS features head and body movements that are fairly clear in the connection between their form and meaning/function, and others that are more opaque. The first group constitutes head and body movements which possess a clear form-function pairing and co-occur with syntactic constituents. It is possible that two or more distinct forms exist that are used in different contexts, but possess the same function – or one form expresses different functions. The second group is composed of head and body movements identified through their form which, however, can vary in phonetic realization; they can possess a broader or narrower meaning/function and co-occur across whole utterances. The movements of both groups are language-relevant, distinctive markers/indicators; that is, they are identified by the Deaf signers due to their form and meaning/ function. There is a third group of head and body movements that do not possess these characteristics, but these are not the immediate subject matter of the present study.

–Some of the linguistic structures indicated by a certain head and/or body movement have a functional common ground; that is, their functions have a semantic/pragmatic contiguity. For example, in ÖGS texts, ‘head forward’ occurs in direct and embedded content interrogatives, embedded polar interrogatives, conditionals, and exclamatory utterances.

As a consequence, the following are the aims of the book:

–First, to show the systematic use of particular head and body movements by describing functional contexts in which the respective movements occur.

–Second, to describe a selection of functions which (1) can be ascribed to certain functional domains, (2) are typologically comparable between (sign) languages, and (3) are associated with head and body movements in ÖGS. This permits a discussion of well-known functions such as expressing negation, assertion, interrogativity, or conditionality. This aim also includes dealing with head and body movements that show common characteristics and have a relation to the signing space as they indicate the referential, alternative, or hypothetical space. In addition, head and body movements are identified as a means of indicating modality.

–Third, the identified head and body movements are classified and common characteristics discussed. I suggest an explanation of why some functions are indicated by the same head movement, and propose a model for identifying at least some nonmanuals in sign languages.

Before introducing the structure of the book, an overview is given of the current state of research on Austrian Sign Language, the object of study.

1.2Research on Austrian Sign Language

In Austria, the University of Graz4 and the Centre for Sign Language and Deaf Communication (ZGH) at Klagenfurt University5 have carried out sign language research since the 1990s. In Graz, the focus has been on interpreting, lexicography, sign language didactics and sociolinguistics. Klagenfurt has conducted various projects on the lives and education of Deaf people, and runs an online dictionary of ÖGS.6 Furthermore, a first volume on ÖGS grammar has been published (Skant et al. 2002). At the time of writing, the ZGH is implementing a project on ‘Segmentation and Structuring of ÖGS-texts,’7 conducted by this author, led by Prof. Franz Dotter, and financed by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). Projects are also being carried out with European partners on the Common European Framework of Reference for ÖGS (SignLef)8 and creating a learning tool for media professionals (Sign Media).9 Krausneker (at Vienna) has researched the sociolinguistics of ÖGS including language policies and bilingualism (for instance, Krausneker 2006, 2008). Schalber (at Graz and Purdue) has analyzed linguistic topics such as modals (Hunger, Schalber & Wilbur 2000), interrogatives (Schalber 2006), adverbial nonmanuals (Schalber & Grose 2008), and possession (Schalber & Hunger 2008). The author, Lackner (at Graz and Klagenfurt) has been working on text organization (turn-taking, dialogue structure, definitional structure), word/sign formation, and functions of head and body movements (see Lackner 2007, 2008, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c, 2009d; Lackner & Stalzer 2010; Lackner et al. in prep.). Wilbur (at Purdue) initiated investigations on typological comparisons including ÖGS, resulting in a special volume of Sign Language & Linguistics (2006, 9:1/2). Wilbur (2002) also compared the phrase structure of American Sign Language and ÖGS. A more detailed description of ÖGS studies that have included head and body markers is provided in chapters 4 to 8.

1.3Organization of the book

The present book focuses on functions associated with head and body markers/ indicators in Austrian Sign Language. This comprises those which are clear in form and meaning (cf. chapters 5, 6, and 8), and those whose form is less regular and can possess different phonetic variations, which are associated with modality (cf. chapter 7). In addition, nonmanuals including head and body markers/ indicators which depend on the signing space are described (cf. chapter 4). In the conclusion, all analyzed head and body elements are categorized, showing their structural characteristics and summarizing their semantic/ pragmatic contiguity. The conclusion closes with a model proposing an option of interpreting certain nonmanuals in sign languages (chapter 9).

When describing the head and body elements in each chapter, the particular phenomena are illustrated using various data. That is, the form and function of each element is described, alongside its positioning and co-occurrence with lexical as well as additional10 (nonmanual) elements. This leads to a demonstration of the respective functional contexts in which the particular head/ body elements occur. In addition, reasons for alternation or co-occurrence of additional elements such as other head/body movements and nonmanuals are given. The illustrations are either photos of the informants when articulating the particular movements/ signs, or examples showing co-occurrence of the manual and nonmanual elements. Where both are used, frequently some photos are left out of the sequence due to lack of space, but are included in the glossing line. A literature overview on relevant functions in sign languages and the means of coding them is provided at the beginning of chapters 4 to 8, with findings on ÖGS being mentioned as well where possible.

Chapter 2 describes the possible head, shoulder and body movements. First, it gives an anatomic view on these movements, followed by highlighting those that have already been identified for other sign languages. Then the chapter explores movements that have been identified and analyzed as language-relevant elements in ÖGS.

Chapter 3 addresses the theoretical bases and methodology. First, it comprises a description of the cognitive-functional domains associated with the analyzed functions. Then it discusses the opportunity to bring usage-based, context-orientated, and interaction-orientated language approaches into sign language research. The subsequent description of the methodological approach covers which functional contexts require which indicators, and provides information on the Deaf informants and annotators, the uniqueness of their particular language variety, and the data coding process.

Chapter 4 dwells on the syntactic/ textual/discourse use of space. First, the functions ‘alternativity,’ ‘hypotheticality,’ and (briefly) ‘reference’ are discussed. These can be indicated by head and/or body movements in ÖGS, but also by other manual and nonmanual means. This also includes an analysis of the common characteristics of various manual and nonmanual spatial cues, resulting in their classification as orientation-toward indicators, moving-toward indicators, and pointing indicators. The next part of this chapter emphasizes two spaces differentiated by their functional uses: the ‘hypothetical space’ (space of thoughts) and the ‘alternative space’. Both are indicated by phrasal beginning or domain markers. In describing the uses of the two spaces I conclude that calibration on the signing space takes place for both (a) the use of the respective indicators and (b) the direction of implementation. This excludes head and/or body elements that are used for listing items and have forward movement not directed by the signing space.

Chapter 5 describes the functions of ‘negation’ and ‘assertion’ which are based on the domains ‘contrast’ and ‘negative and positive scalar polarity.’ In doing so, the chapter focuses on the respective head movements (headshakes, nods). With regard to negation, the two identified forms of headshakes functioning as clause negators are described. They are distinguished from headshakes bearing a ‘speech act negation function’ and those that ‘imply negative contrast.’ In addition, negative headshakes are demarcated from other headshakes, i.e. those conveying different forms and/ or functions. The same approach is used for head nods functioning as means of assertion. Their form and function, and co-occurrence with other means of assertion and other head markers, are detailed. For assertive head nods, the constituents they cover and contexts in which they frequently occur are analyzed. The chapter concludes by delimiting assertive head nods from confirmative ones.

Chapter 6 will focus on the interrogative and irrealis functions, indicated by head positions (among other manual...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Acknowledgements
• Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Annotation conventions
• 1 Introduction
• Part I: Research objective, theoretical bases, and methodology
• Part II: Functions associated with head and body movements in ÖGS
• Part III: Conclusions on head and body movements in ÖGS
• APPENDIX A: Corpora
• APPENDIX B: Metadata of the participants from Großarl