Linguistics: Nonmanual Markers

The first stages of sign language research concentrated almost exclusively on the articulations produced by the hands and forearms. However, it quickly became clear that a whole array of other articulations produced by the torso, the head, and the face are also crucially involved in encoding lexical and grammatical information. These other articulations, known as nonmanual markings, have been the object of intensive research. In some cases, their proper characterization in linguistic terms is still at the center of heated debates, but by now it is unquestionable that they constitute an integral part of signed utterances. This overview will focus on a subset of nonmanual markers, namely those that are articulated by the face in the broad sense, namely by the eyebrows, the mouth or lips, the eyes, and the cheeks. Thus, we put aside nonmanual markings articulated by the torso and the head itself as a whole. The overview will proceed from the smaller units of grammatical description and analysis to the larger ones, illustrating the roles played by facial nonmanuals in each of them.

Already at the level of the phonological description of a lexical sign, it becomes clear that facial nonmanuals can behave as a phonological parameter that, despite not being always meaningful by itself, can establish contrasts in meaning between pairs of signs that differ only in their specification for nonmanual behavior. In other words, a non-manual contrast can give rise to a minimal pair in the same way as handshape, location, or movement. This can be witnessed in the Catalan Sign Language (LSC) pair TOO-MUCH vs. DISGUST, where the latter is only distinguished by an additional facial expression of dislike, as illustrated in Figure 1.

The mouth also produces articulations that relate to the lexical specification of signs. Two types of mouth articulations have been identified across sign languages: mouth gestures (or oral components) and mouthings (spoken components). The former are lexically specified gestures of the sign that are unrelated to any spoken word but are obligatory in the execution of the sign. An instance of this is represented by the articulation [shhh] (clenched teeth releasing air) that necessarily accompanies the sign BE-PRESENT in Sign Language of the Netherlands (NGT). Another is the tongue wiggling that is coarticulated with the sign THERE-BE in LSC.

Figure 1 TOO-MUCH vs. DISGUST in Catalan Sign Language LSC

[Page 618]The latter type, mouthings, are (normally silent) articulations related to a spoken word corresponding to the sign in the ambient language. Typically, they do not surface as the full-fledged version of the word but are simplified or truncated, as in the British Sign Language (BSL) articulation [hsp] corresponding to the word husband and coappearing with the sign HUSBAND or [of] with the sign SWITCH-OFF. In some families of signs, mouthings can distinguish manual homonyms, namely different signs that are identical at the manual level but differ in their mouth movements. This is, for instance, the case with FINLAND and METAL in BSL. It is a matter of debate whether mouthings are an integral part of the phonological description of the sign or simply a consequence of linguistic performance resulting from contact with the spoken language. As suggested, in some examples, it is clear that mouthings are lexically specified. In addition, mouthings can spread across well-defined prosodic domains beyond the sign they are associated with, as in DEAF INDEX (“Are you deaf?”) in BSL, where the articulation [def] derived from the English word deaf extends over both signs, despite being lexically associated only with the first one.

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