Turkish Sign Language (TID) Research Papers (original) (raw)

Personal names are used throughout the world irrespective of language, cultural setting, social class, ethnicity, and etc. However, how these names can be expressed and used can differ depending on both language and culture. Moreover, while hearing individuals are able to use and hear their personal (phonetic/official) names, Deaf individuals use name signs, particular signs associated with the individuals’ names, as a way to indentify themselves to others particularly within the Deaf community because personal names are not accessible in sign languages: it is difficult to teach social and linguistic significance of personal names to Deaf people, as they cannot hear the pronunciation of
these names. The perception, formation and categorization of personal name signs is based on visual information, cultural beliefs of the Deaf community and linguistic means of expression. Present study which is a preliminary one for the formation of personal name signs in Turkish Sign Language (TİD) aims at investigating the system of personal name signs and describing the naming behavior in TİD with reference to the categories and to the methods of forming personal name signs. To that end, twenty-five native Deaf signers of TİD have been selected as the participants of the study. A questionnaire, including a number of questions related to background information about their personal life and to their personal name signs, has been applied to each participant
individually via a sign language interpreter. Afterwards, each participant has been requested to sign his/her name sign(s) and each individual has been recorded by a video camera during the signing process of their own name sign(s). In addition to their own name signs, the same participants have also been asked to demonstrate name signs for some public figures and popular characters from the hearing community individually
and this procedure has also been recorded by a video camera. In order to evaluate the data, personal name signs of the participants have been sorted out and they have been split into categories based on their frequencies and percentages. Moreover, personal name signs have also been examined in terms of the parameters of sign structure so as
to account for associating systematic patterns. The results of the study have shown that there are four categories of personal name signs in TİD: Descriptive, Arbitrary, Initialised-descriptive and Loan/borrowed name signs. These categories are the same or similar to those found in other sign languages such as ASL, BSL, ESL and NZSL.
Thanks to the analysis of personal name signs according to the parameters of sign structure, results have also shown that the personal name signs in TİD observed in the study have rule-governed and systematic patterns. In addition, name sign practices in the present study illuminate certain important cultural values in regard to deaf identity and connection with the group. The deaf community has, as in any other cultural group, basic values and customs that most members follow such as uniqueness of name signs, name signs as identity and picking the right name signs. Along with a few more studies of its kind in the sign language literature, this study contributes to the field of
onomastics in offering a rather novel topic of study.