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Part of
Sonic Signatures: Studies dedicated to John Harris
Edited by Geoff Lindsey and Andrew Nevins
[Language Faculty and Beyond 14] 2017
► pp. 231–262

The phonology of handshape distribution in Maxakalí sign

| University College London
| University College London

We provide an analysis of the distribution of handshapes on the dominant and non-dominant hand in the incipient village sign language found in the Maxakalí community in Brazil. The most frequent handshapes reflect tendencies in choosing from the crosslinguistically unmarked set of handshapes, and are particularly well-suited to quantitative analyses of handshape complexity found in models such as Ann (2006) and Brentari (2003), in addition to favouring a core set chosen from the most maximally dispersed handshapes.

Keywords: village sign language, handshape complexity, sign language phonology, markedness, non-dominant hand
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1Village sign languages
    • 1.2Data and methods
  • 2.Results of handshapes and discussion of models
    • 2.1Handshape dispersion and distinctness in Maxakalí
    • 2.2Maximal dispersion of handshapes and Sandler et al 2011’s model
    • 2.3The inventory of unmarked handshapes and how to derive them
    • 2.4Selected finger parameters in van der Hulst’s (1996a) model
    • 2.5 Battison’s (1978) Symmetry and Dominance conditions
    • 2.6Towards a quantitatively verifiable metric of ease of articulation
    • 2.7 Brentari’s (1998) handshape complexity model
    • 2.8Perceptual distinctness
  • 3.The non-dominant hand
  • 4.Conclusion
  • Appendix
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 30 November 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/lfab.14.c14
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