Sign language is a form of visual language that uses hand gestures and body language to convey meaning.
Sign languages are structurally distinct from the spoken languages. There is also an international sign language, which is used by deaf people in international meetings and informally when travelling and socializing. It is not as complex as natural sign languages and has a limited lexicon.
The national sign languages as the key to the inclusion of deaf people in society. National sign languages are full, complex natural languages with the same linguistic properties as spoken languages, including phonetic, phonemic, syllabic, morphological, syntactic, discourse,and pragmatic levels of organisation. They are the mother tongue and the natural languages of deaf children. They are the vector of the inclusion of deaf children both in deaf communities and in society, fostering the building of their own identities and communities.
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizes and promotes the use of sign languages. It makes clear that sign languages are equal in status to spoken languages.
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The UN General Assembly has proclaimed 23 September as the International Day of Sign Languages in order to raise awareness of the importance of sign language in the full realization of the human rights of people who are deaf.
The theme for 2022 International Day of Sign languages is "Sign Languages Unite Us".
Deaf communities, governments and civil society organisations maintain their collective efforts in fostering, promoting and recognising national sign languages as part of their countries’ vibrant and diverse linguistic landscapes.
According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are more than 70 million deaf people worldwide. More than 80% of them live in developing countries. Collectively, they use more than 300 different sign languages.
The day acknowledges that early access to sign language including quality education available in sign language, is vital to the growth and development of the deaf individual. It recognizes the importance of preserving sign languages as part of linguistic and cultural diversity.
The first International Day of Sign Language was observed across the world on September 23, 2018, with the theme “With Sign Language, Everyone is Included!”
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