A Grammar of Italian Sign Language (LIS)

The previous paragraph has listed the processes, affecting both core and non-core signs, leading to lexicalisation, which implies i) non-compositional meaning; ii) a lesser degree of iconicity; iii) standardisation.

The present section, instead, concerns a different process affecting LIS lexicon that can be considered the reverse of lexicalisation. This is referred to as ‘delexicalisation’ and indicates the possibility for core-lexical signs to display modifications typical of non-core lexical signs, such as exploiting the topographic function of the signing space or being more visually-motivated. Since these mechanisms are widespread, it is important to identify them in order to isolate the citation form of the sign. We provide some explanatory examples of delexicalisation processes in LIS below.

            The most common process of delexicalisation concerns the use of the signing space with a topographic function (PRAGMATICS 8.1.2). Specifically, signs articulated in the neutral space can be displaced to convey information of localisation and spatial distribution. In so doing, the signing space represents how entities are localised in the real word, thus the points of articulation of signs are isomorphic to the positions of the referents. In the example below, the signer displaces the sign box in order to convey the position of the three different boxes.

 

 

 

            box_a box_b box_c

            ‘A box on the right, one in the middle, and one on the left.’

 

Core-lexical signs can also change to include specific information such as size and shape. As we can see in the examples below, the articulation of the sign tie, provided in (a) in its citation form, can be modified to specify size, as illustrated in (b). Specifically, big size is conveyed by modifying the handshape and articulating specific non-manual markers consisting in furrowed eyebrows (fe) and teeth on the lower lip (tl). For further details see MORPHOLOGY 2.2.1.

 

    

   a.         tie (recreated from Petitta et al., 2015: 160)

 

             

                               tl

                              fe

            b.        tie

            ‘Big tie’ (recreated from Petitta et al., 2015: 160)

 

Name signs (LEXICON 3.1.2) are a special kind of delexicalisation since the lexical signs selected as name signs are devoid of their semantic content to become proper names identifying specific individuals (or classes of individuals) rather than classes of entities. One very common example in LIS is the sign for flower, which often becomes the name sign of women called Margherita ‘daisy’, thus referring to a specific individual rather than a flower.

 

              

            margherita

 

One further process of delexicalisation is the metaphorical use of core-lexical signs, typically found in poetry and narrative. In such instances, the meaning of the sign is extended to more abstract interpretations. The example in (a) below is an excerpt of the poetry Grazie ‘Thanks’ by Rosaria and Giuseppe Giuranna (2002). The sign perceive is signed higher, in correspondence of the forehead (a), rather than in front of the signer’s eyes as in its citation form (b), to convey the meaning ‘to perceive with mind’s eyes’. In so doing, the metaphor maps the domains of vision and cognition, which are often related in LIS metaphors. Sign language metaphors build on the shared cultural and linguistic knowledge of the Italian Deaf community. The reader is referred to SOCIO-HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 2.3 for details about metaphors in poetry and narrative.

 

 

 

            a.         perceive_[high]

            ‘To perceive with mind’s eyes’ (recreated from Giuranna & Giuranna 2002, Grazie)

 

 

 

            b.         perceive (citation form)

   

It is important to distinguish the instances above from core lexical signs whose meaning originates from a metaphor (LEXICON 1.3.1). For instance, in LIS we find many signs originating from the metaphor of the mind as a container. For this reason, signs referring to the domain of cognition such as know, understand, ignorant, forget, learn are signed near or on the forehead. We provide an example below for clarity.

 

 

 

            understand