Lithuanian Sign Language

language
name=Lithuanian Sign Language
nativename=LtSL
states=Lithuanian
region=Limited to Lithuania
signers=5,000
family=influenced by Russian Sign Language
iso2=sgn-LT
iso3=lls

Lithuanian Sign Language (LtSL) is a sign language used in Lithuania by approximately 5,000 deaf persons, as well as some hard of hearing and hearing persons. Very little is known about its history before 1945. From 1945 to 1990 it was used along with Russian Sign Language and the two sign languages became very similar. Russian lip-patterns used with some LtSL signs indicate that the sign may have been originally borrowed from Russian Sign Language. When Lithuania became independent, its contacts with Russian Sign Language were almost cut off, and now it's developing as an independent language, with some influence from international signs.

Linguistic research of LtSL started in 1996, when it was recognized as the native language of the Deaf. Since then, a Lithuanian Sign Language Dictionary (based on traditional word to sign principle) was published in 5 volumes (including about 3000 signs), along with some thematic vocabularies and bilingual texts in LtSL and Lithuanian (including "Adam's book"). Now work is being done on an LtSL database and sign language teaching materials for parents of the Deaf, teachers of deaf students and sign language interpreters.

References

* Kupcinskas, Dainora. (1999). "Issues in standardizing Lithuanian Sign Language," Lituanus 45.1:17–20.