A Grammar of Italian Sign Language (LIS)

Some LIS signs are articulated with a particular type of secondary movement, namely handshape change. Specifically, the handshape of the sign can undergo opening, closing, flattening, bending, wiggling, rubbing, or spreading movements (PHONOLOGY 1.3.2). Such handshape change might be blocked as a result of a morphological process, giving rise to a phonological process called handshape drop. Typically, the most prominent of the two handshapes involved in the citation form is retained, while the other one is deleted. To exemplify this phenomenon, we consider number inflection both in the verbal (MORPHOLOGY 3.1.2.2) and in the nominal domain (MORPHOLOGY 4.1).

            The citation form of the verb warn involves handshape change from closed 5 to extended 3 (a). This sign can be inflected for number to express the meaning ‘(to) warn them/all’. From an articulatory point of view, plural inflection is realised as an arc movement on the horizontal plane (b).

 

 

 

            a.         warn (citation form)

 

 

 

            b.         warn_arc (handshape drop)

            ‘(To) warn them/all’

 

As a result of this morphological process, the sign warn above (b) undergoes handshape drop: during the arc movement, only one of the two handshapes involved is retained, namely extended 3.

            In the nominal domain, some nouns involving handshape change may undergo handshape drop as well. For example, the citation form of the noun title requires finger bending from spread V to curved open V, as shown in (a) below. This sign can be inflected for number to express plurality (‘titles’). From an articulatory point of view, plural inflection is realised by reduplication of the sign and simultaneous displacement in the signing space (b) below.

 

 

 

            a.         title (citation form)

 

 

 

            b.         title++ (handshape drop)

            ‘Titles’

 

As a result of plural inflection, the sign title undergoes handshape drop: during the downward displacement, only one of the two handshapes involved is retained, namely curved open V.