View source for Hawaiʻi Sign Language

{{Short description|Indigenous sign language used in Hawaii}}
{{Infobox language
|name=Hawaiʻi Sign Language
|altname=Hoailona ʻŌlelo o Hawaiʻi
|states=[[United States]]
|region=[[Hawaii]]
|speakers=40
|speakers2=[[endangered language|Moribund]]; a few elderly signers are [[bilingual]] with the dominant [[American Sign Language|ASL]]. It may be that all speak mixed HSL/ASL, {{aka}} Creolized Hawai‘i Sign Language (CHSL).<ref name="endangeredlanguages">{{cite web |url=http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/4275 |title =  Hawai'i Sign Language |website=Endangered Languages Project |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207030826/http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/4275 |archive-date= Dec 7, 2023 }}</ref><ref name=e26/>
|date=2019
|ref=e26
|familycolor=sign
|family= [[Language isolate]]
|iso3=hps
|glotto=hawa1235
|glottorefname=Hawaiʻi Pidgin Sign Language
}}
 
'''Hawaiʻi Sign Language''' or '''Hawaiian Sign Language''' (HSL; [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]]: ''Hoailona ʻŌlelo o Hawaiʻi''), also known as '''Hoailona ʻŌlelo''', '''Old Hawaiʻi Sign Language''' and '''Hawaiʻi Pidgin Sign Language''',<ref name="endangeredlanguages"/> is an indigenous [[sign language]] native to [[Hawaii|Hawaiʻi]]. Historical records document its presence on the islands as early as the 1820s, but HSL was not formally recognized by linguists until 2013.<ref name=hsl>{{cite news|title=Linguists say Hawaii Sign Language found to be distinct language|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/higher-education/linguists-say-hawaii-sign-language-found-to-be-distinct-language/2013/03/01/bbca83cc-82d6-11e2-a671-0307392de8de_story.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111124559/https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/higher-education/linguists-say-hawaii-sign-language-found-to-be-distinct-language/2013/03/01/bbca83cc-82d6-11e2-a671-0307392de8de_story.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 November 2019|access-date=9 March 2013|newspaper=Washington Post|date=1 March 2013}}</ref>

Although previously believed to be related to [[American Sign Language]] (ASL),<ref>[[Henri Wittmann|Wittmann, Henri]] (1991). "Classification linguistique des langues signées non vocalement." ''Revue québécoise de linguistique théorique et appliquée'' 10:1.215–88.[http://www.nou-la.org/ling/1991a-class.pdf]</ref> the two languages are unrelated.{{sfn|Lambrecht|Earth|Woodward|2013}}{{sfn|Rarrick|Labrecht|2016}} In 2013, HSL was used by around 40 people, mostly over 80 years old.<ref>Mcavoy, A. (2013, March 01). [http://www.staradvertiser.com/2013/03/01/breaking-news/hawaii-sign-language-found-to-be-distinct-language/ Hawaii Sign Language found to be distinct language]. ''Associated Press''. Retrieved April 30, 2017</ref> An HSL–ASL creole, Creole Hawaiʻi Sign Language (CHSL), is used by approximately 40 individuals in the generations between those who signed HSL exclusively and those who sign ASL exclusively.{{sfn|Clark|Rarrick|Rentz|Stabile|2016}} Since the 1940s, ASL has almost fully replaced the use of HSL on the islands of Hawaiʻi <ref name=":0" /> and CHSL is likely to also be lost in the next 50 years.{{sfn|Clark|Rarrick|Rentz|Stabile|2016}} HSL is considered [[Endangered language|critically endangered]].<ref name="endangeredlanguages"/>

== History ==
Although HSL is not itself a [[pidgin]],<ref name="Ethnologue">{{citation|title=Ethnologue|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/language/hps}}
</ref> it is commonly known as Hawaiʻi Pidgin Sign Language or Pidgin Sign Language due to its historical association with [[Hawaii Pidgin|Hawaiʻi Pidgin]]. Linguists who have begun to document the language and community members prefer the name ''Hawaiʻi Sign Language'',{{sfn|Rarrick|Labrecht|2016}}{{sfn|Lambrecht|Earth|Woodward|2013}} and that is the name used for it in [[ISO 639-3]] as of 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www-01.sil.org/iso639-3/documentation.asp?id=hps|title=Documentation for ISO 639 identifier: hps|access-date=2014-02-07}}</ref>

Village sign use, by both Deaf and hearing, is attested from 1820. There is the possibility of influence from immigrant sign later that century, though HSL has little in common today with ASL or other signed and spoken languages it has come in contact with.  The establishment of a school for the deaf in 1914 strengthened the use of sign, primarily HSL, among the students. A Chinese-Hawaiian Deaf man named Edwin Inn taught HSL to other d/Deaf adults and also stood as president of a Deaf club.<ref name=":1" /> However, the introduction of ASL in 1941 in place of purely oral instruction resulted in a shift from HSL.

== Recognition ==
[[File:DiscoveryHSL.jpg|right|thumb|Bingham letter]]
HSL was recognized by linguists on March 1, 2013, by a research group from the [[University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa]].  The research team found a letter from [[Hiram Bingham I|Reverend Hiram Bingham]] to [[Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet|Reverend Thomas H. Gallaudet]] from Feb. 23, 1821. The letter described several instances of deaf [[Native Hawaiians|Kānaka Maoli]] communicating to Bingham in their own sign language.{{sfn|Lambrecht|Earth|Woodward|2013}} The initial research team interviewed 19 Deaf people and two children of Deaf parents on four islands.<ref>Lincoln, M. (2013, March 01). [http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/21440949/nearly-lost-language-discovered-in-hawaii Nearly lost language discovered in Hawaiʻi]. Retrieved April 30, 2017</ref> Eighty percent of HSL vocabulary is different from [[American Sign Language]].<ref name=":5">Clark, B., Lambrecht, L., Rarrick, S., Stabile, C., & Woodward, J. (2013). [http://ling.hawaii.edu/wp-content/uploads/ABSTRACT-FOR-DOCUMENTATION-OF-HAWAII-SIGN-LANGUAGE.pdf <nowiki>DOCUMENTATION OF HAWAIʻI SIGN LANGUAGE: AN OVERVIEW OF SOME RECENT MAJOR RESEARCH FINDINGS [Abstract]</nowiki>]. ''University of Hawaiʻi,'' 1-2. Retrieved April 30, 2017</ref>

Some reports on HSL claimed it to be "the first new language to be uncovered within the [[United States]] since the 1930s,"<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://rosettaproject.org/blog/02013/mar/8/linguists-discover-existence-distinct-hawaiian-sig/|title=Linguists Discover Existence of Distinct Hawaiian Sign Language |website=The Rosetta Project |date=March 8, 2013 |first1=Karin |last1=Wiecha |access-date=2016-04-28}}</ref> or that it may be the "last undiscovered language in the country."<ref>Wilcox, D. (n.d.). [https://kealakai.byuh.edu/content/linguists-rediscover-hawaiian-sign-language Linguists rediscover Hawaiian Sign Language] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181108011107/https://kealakai.byuh.edu/content/linguists-rediscover-hawaiian-sign-language |date=2018-11-08 }}. Retrieved April 30, 2017</ref>

Prior to 2013, HSL was largely undocumented.<ref name="race">{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/aug/10/race-to-save-hawaii-sign-language | title=The Race to Save a Dying Language |last=Perlin |first=Ross |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=August 10, 2016}}</ref> HSL is at risk of [[Language extinction|becoming dormant]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Endangered Languages: Key Terms |url=https://www.pbs.org/thelinguists/Endangered-Languages/Key-Terms.html |website=The Linguists |publisher=Public Broadcasting Service |access-date=22 December 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Hornsby |first1=Michael |title=Sleeping languages: Exercises on language revival. |url=http://languagesindanger.eu/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/TaskSleepingLgs.pdf |website=Languages in Danger |publisher=Adam Mickiewicz University |access-date=22 December 2021 |date=December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Browning |first1=Daniel |title=NAIDOC Week: Indigenous languages aren't dead, just sleeping — and this is why they matter |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-08/naidoc-week-not-dead-just-sleeping-indigenous-languages-matter/8681076 |website=ABC News |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=22 December 2021 |date=7 July 2017}}</ref> due to its low number of signers and the adoption of [[ASL]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://manoa.hawaii.edu/news/article.php?aId=5600/|title=Mānoa: Research team discovers existence of Hawaiʻi Sign Language {{!}} University of Hawaii News|website=manoa.hawaii.edu|access-date=2016-04-28}}</ref>

== HSL and ASL Comparisons ==
HSL shares few lexical and grammatical components with ASL.{{sfn|Rarrick|Labrecht|2016}}{{sfn|Lambrecht|Earth|Woodward|2013}}<ref name="hsl" /><ref name=":3">Tanigawa, N. (2016, NOV 22). [http://hawaiipublicradio.org/post/hawai-i-sign-language-still-whispers Hawai'i Sign Language Still Whispers]. Retrieved May 1, 2017</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=HMSA|title=sign preservation|url=https://islandscene.com/sign-preservation|access-date=2021-08-20|website=islandscene.com|language=en-US}}</ref> While HSL follows subject, object, verb (SOV) typology, ASL follows subject, verb, object (SVO) typology.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/hps|title=Hawaii Sign Language|work=Ethnologue|access-date=2018-02-09|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/ase|title=American Sign Language|work=Ethnologue|access-date=2018-02-09|language=en}}</ref> HSL does not have verbal classifiers – these were previously thought to be universal in sign languages, and ASL makes extensive use of these.{{sfn|Rarrick|2015}} HSL also has several entirely non-manual lexical items, including verbs and nouns, which are not typical in ASL.<ref name=":5" />

== HSL Today ==
An estimated 15,857 of the total 833,610 residents of Hawaiʻi (1.9%) are audiologically [[deaf]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://libguides.gallaudet.edu/content.php?pid=119476&sid=1029190|title=LibGuides. Deaf Statistics. Deaf population of the U.S..|last=Smith|first=Sarah Hamrick, Laura Jacobi, Patrick Oberholtzer, Elizabeth Henry, Jamie|website=libguides.gallaudet.edu|language=en|access-date=2016-04-28}}</ref> Among this population, ASL is now significantly more common than HSL.  There are a handful of services available to help d/Deaf Hawaiian residents learn ASL and also for those who wish to learn ASL to become interpreters, such as the Aloha State Association of the Deaf and the American Sign Language Interpreter Education Program.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.signsofself.org/html/hawaii_links.html|title=Signs of Self|website=www.signsofself.org|access-date=2016-04-28}}</ref> Equivalent services for HSL are nearly non-existent, partially because some members of the Deaf community in Hawaiʻi have felt that it is not worth preservation.<ref name=":3" />

Researchers at the Sign Language Documentation Training Center and the [[University of Hawaiʻi]] have begun projects to document HSL. Their first goal is to teach graduate students and other linguists how to document HSL and other small sign languages used in Hawaiʻi.{{sfn|Rarrick|Wilson|2016}} Their second goal is to have 20 hours of translated HSL on video.<ref name="race" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://elar.soas.ac.uk/Collection/MPI483793|title=Documentation of Hawaii Sign Language: Building the Foundation for Documentation, Conservation, and Revitalization of Endangered Pacific Island Sign Languages.|website=Endangered Languages Archive at SOAS University of London|access-date=July 12, 2017}}</ref> As of 2016, a dictionary and video archive of speakers had been created.<ref name=":3" />

== References ==
{{Portal|Hawaii}}
{{reflist|30em}}

===Bibliography===
{{refbegin|indent=yes}}
* {{citation
 |last1=Lambrecht |first1=Linda
 |last2=Earth |first2=Barbara
 |last3=Woodward |first3=James
 |date=March 3, 2013
 |place=University of Hawaiʻi
 |title=History and Documentation of Hawaiʻi Sign Language: First Report
 |publisher=3rd International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation
 |hdl=10125/26133 |hdl-access=free
}}
* {{cite journal
 |last=Rarrick |first=Samantha
 |date=2015
 |title=A Sketch of Handshape Morphology in Hawai'i Sign Language
 |journal=University of Hawai'i at Manoa Working Papers in Linguistics
 |volume=46
 |issue=6
 |hdl=10125/73260 |hdl-access=free
}}
* {{cite journal
 |first1=Brenda |last1=Clark
 |first2=Samantha |last2=Rarrick
 |first3=Bradley |last3=Rentz
 |first4=Claire |last4=Stabile
 |first5=James |last5=Woodward
 |first6=Sarah |last6=Uno
 |date=2016
 |title=Uncovering Creole Hawaiʻi Sign Language: Evidence from a case study
 |journal=Theoretical Issues in Sign Language Research
 |volume=12
}}
* {{cite journal
 |last1=Rarrick |first1=Samantha
 |last2=Labrecht |first2=Linda
 |year=2016
 |title=Hawaiʻi Sign Language
 |journal=The SAGE Deaf Studies Encyclopedia
 |pages=781–785
 |doi=10.4135/9781483346489.n247
 |hdl=10072/394832
}}
* {{cite journal
 |first1=Samantha |last1=Rarrick
 |first2=Brittany |last2=Wilson
 |year=2016
 |title=Documenting Hawai'i's Sign Languages
 |journal=Language Documentation & Conservation
 |volume=10
 |pages=337–346
 |hdl=10125/24697 |hdl-access=free
 |issn=1934-5275
}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.signsofself.org/html/hawaii_links.html Hawaii Links & Resources. Signs of Self: Independent Living Services for People who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or Deaf-Blind]
* [https://islandscene.com/sign-preservation]
* Rarrick, Samantha & Brittany Wilson. 2015. [https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/handle/10125/24697/rarrick.pdf Documenting Hawai'i's Sign Language.]
* [http://elar.soas.ac.uk/deposit/0345 ELAR archive of Documentation of Hawaii Sign Language]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgCigSOF5PQ Hawai'i Sign Language]
* [https://prezi.com/zkoc1k32ujt_/hawaiian-sign-language-vs-american-sign-language/?webgl=0 Hawaiian Sign Language vs. American Sign Language]

{{Hawaii}}
{{Languages of Hawaii}}
{{Languages of the United States}}
{{sign language navigation}}

[[Category:Endangered sign language isolates]]
[[Category:Indigenous languages of Hawaii]]
[[Category:Village sign languages]]
[[Category:Disability in Hawaii]]
[[Category:Sign languages of the United States]]
[[Category:Endangered Indigenous languages of the Americas]]
[[Category:Languages attested from the 1820s]]
[[Category:Language isolates of North America]]