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The American Sign Language (ASL) alphabet, sometimes called the "deaf alphabet", is a system of manual communication used by deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the United States and other parts of North America. It is based on a combination of hand shapes, gestures, and facial expressions, and is used to represent the letters of the ...
The fingerspelling alphabet is used in sign language to spell out names of people and places for which there is not a sign. Fingerspelling can also be used to spell words for signs that the signer does not know the sign for, or to clarify a sign that is not known by the person reading the signer.
Which hand to use for the ASL ABC’s? Depending on whether you are left- or right-handed, you will notice that one hand will be more active than the other one. Usually, the more active hand is your dominant hand or writing hand. As a left-handed person, you would probably use your left hand to fingerspell.
Fingerspelling (or dactylology) is the representation of the letters of a writing system, and sometimes numeral systems, using only the hands. These manual alphabets (also known as finger alphabets or hand alphabets) have often been used in deaf education and have subsequently been adopted as a distinct part of a number of sign languages.
See It, Say It, Sign It by Jack Hartmann teaches sign language for each letter and the letter sounds for each letter of the alphabet with American sign language in this Jack Hartmann video.
Finger spelling (also called the manual alphabet) is a set of hand shapes and motions that represent each letter of the alphabet. Situations where finger spelling is often used include: When emphasizing a specific word such as "yes".
Sign Language resources online including ASL dictionary, tutorials, grammar, sentences, alphabet, Deaf culture, baby signing, and more.
