Akrasia
-= GALACTIC BASIC SIGN LANGUAGE =-
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: To create a submission for a language used by the hearing impaired across the Galaxy.
Image Credit: Deaf Children Australia, https://deafchildrenaustralia.org.au/auslan-fingerspelling-font/
Links: http://starwarsrp.net/blog/768/entry-2310-galactic-basic-sign-language-gbsl/http://starwarsrp.net/blog/768/entry-2310-galactic-basic-sign-language-gbsl/
GENERAL INFORMATION
Media Name: Galactic Basic Sign Language (GBSL.)
Format: Language.
Distribution: Common
Length: Best description is Recurring. There are about 15,000 signs commonly cited in GBSL dictionaries, but in reality many more exist in different dialects and across systems.
Description: GBSL is a variety of sign language accessible to the masses of hearing impaired sentients across the Galaxy. Established in the Core worlds, it is catered specifically to bipedal, limbed organisms, with a number of signs specifically only for human and near human species. Alternate varieties exist for other sentients, but the complexity of language is either limited, or aided by a tertiary form of communication.
SOCIAL INFORMATION
Author: N/A. GBSL came about naturally out of necessity. It is believed the earliest forms of the language appeared in the Core in the Old Republic era, and since then the language has undergone near endless expansion and variation.
Publisher: Just as there is no definitive author/creator of GBSL, there is no definite publisher. However, the first documented GBSL dictionary was published in 500 BBY by linguist Attakast Yint, the first edition came with 10,114 different signs.
Reception: For historians after the Great Collapse, it appears that GBSL, or a variation of it, has been accepted as the go-to language for hearing impaired and deaf sentients for as long as recorded history. For core planets especially, a good portion of citizens will understand at least basic phrases. Most protocol droids are programmed to translate the language.
CONTENT INFORMATION
Source: Auslan alphabet. Deaf Children Australia, https://deafchildrenaustralia.org.au/auslan-fingerspelling-font/https://deafchildrenaustralia.org.au/auslan-fingerspelling-font/
Current GBSL dictionaries contain approximately 15000 signs. In reality, there is no way to determine the exact number of different signs, as more often than not they carry multiple meanings, and will vary in number depending on region, dialect, and species. Signs can be used to symbolise words, indicate meaning, tone, spatial direction, and a whole host of other subjects. Many users combine sign with mouthing or speaking aloud words in Galactic Basic, for the benefit of both those with typical hearing, and hearing impaired individuals capable of reading lips.
GBSL signs don’t directly translate into words, instead they’re used in combination with facial expression and body language to convey information. For proper nouns, or difficult concepts, fingerspelling is used to spell out the word in Galactic Basic.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
GBSL is not an invented language. Instead, it evolved naturally from Galactic Standard Basic from necessity, likely during the Old Republic Era. It survived the numerous following disasters in Galactic history through its widespread use. At first, there was only an alphabet, and a few signs for words, but over time, the vocabulary increased, with more and more signs introduced with time. Today, 13% of Galactic Standard Basic speakers are fluent in GBSL, while 65% of partially or profoundly deaf Basic speakers are fluent in GBSL. Many of these speakers use it as their primary language.
