Chapter 10
Phonetics
Provide three examples – real or hypothetical – from the sign language you know best in which the form of a sign changes under the influence of a preceding or following sign. Try to find examples in which different parameters are affected and describe what exactly happens.
In Chapter 9, we explained that such formal changes are very common in compounds (e.g. regressive handshape assimilation). In addition, a parameter of a sign may also change in a sentence context.
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The ASL and SASL examples in assignment 1 in Chapter 9 illustrate formal changes within compounds: handshape assimilation in the ASL compound know^stay, assimilation of orientation and handedness in the SASL compound sand^place ‘desert’. The students should provide similar example from their own sign language.
SASL ‘desert’ (Source: NID, SA) -
Handshape assimilations may also occur in a sentence context, for instance, with pronouns which may assimilate the handshape of an adjacent lexical sign. For instance, in the NGT sequence index1 wait, the pointing sign may be articulated with the -hand of wait.
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Location assimilation is also frequently observed; for instance, a sign that is lexically specified for articulation on the forehead may have a slightly lower place of articulation when preceded or followed by a sign with a lower place of articulation.
This influence has also been found in experimental studied on ASL: