COST

The COST project „SignGram“

Funded by the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) the project “SignGram“ aims at compiling data about the current status of research in the field of sign language linguistics from several European countries. Based on these findings in sign language research the goal is to produce a reference grammar for sign languages, i.e. a blue print which represents a kind of template to draw up sign language grammars in the future.

Although in the field of sign language linguistics remarkable findings could be made out so far, most countries lack a detailed description of the particular sign languages in the sense of a grammar of the particular sign language. For this very reason the application of the project “SignGram – Unraveling the grammars of European sign languages: pathways to full citizenship of deaf signers and to the protection of their linguistic heritage“ was submitted to the European Cooperation for Science and Technology (COST) by Josep Quer, University of Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, as project leader in cooperation with seven further countries.

From 2011 to 2014 fifteen countries were involved in this project including Germany, France, Greek, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain. Later on, also Denmark, Great Britain, Island, Norway, Austria, and Turkey as well as the external cooperation partners Argentina und Australia joined.

Following the main goals of COST – i.e. networking, academic exchange, and promoting young scientists – meetings between the involved research teams took place on a regular basis which focused on specific topics. Also Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM) were implemented. In addition, conferences as well as summer schools for young researchers in the field of sign language research were organized periodically.

The outcome of the project, the blue print for a reference grammar, comprises four parts: a table of contents, a manual, a glossary, and a collection of elicitation materials. In the table of contents the obligatory grammatical categories for a sign language grammar are listed. The manual offers back ground information on the particular grammatical categories including descriptions and examples which illustrate particular phenomena. In the glossary the linguistic terminology used in the manual is listed and explained. The collection of elicitation materials provides instructions and sample applications for collecting the required language data.

More detailed information can be found on the project homepage: http://signgram.eu/

Dissemination of COST in different sign languages:
https://parles.upf.edu/llocs/cost-signgram/dissemination