signLingo
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Reference

german sign language

DGS became a legally recognised language in Germany in 2002, and is unrelated to ASL despite Europe being ASL’s ancestral home.

Alphabet5

  • A

    A closed fist with your thumb straight up the side.

  • B

    Four fingers straight and together, thumb folded flat across the palm.

  • C

    Fingers and thumb curved into a C, palm turned to the side.

  • L

    Index up, thumb straight out to the side at a right angle.

  • O

    All fingers curve down to meet the thumb in a round O.

Numbers5

  • 1

    Thumb up on its own, fingers closed.

    German counting begins on the thumb, not the index finger.

  • 2

    Thumb and index finger out.

  • 3

    Thumb, index and middle fingers out.

  • 4

    Four fingers up, thumb folded in.

  • 5

    Open hand, all five fingers spread.

what this chart doesn’t cover

Fingerspelling is a small corner of DGS. Real signing carries grammar in movement, facial expression and the space in front of you — none of which a still handshape can hold. Treat this as a doorway, and learn the rest from Deaf teachers.

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