Abstract
Few published research papers concern the study of communication and language development among children with congenital deafblindness. The aim of this study is to explore and discuss linguistic features of what may be considered as tactile languages. By analysing one pilot video observation of a five year old congenital deafblind child communicating with his mother about a slide experience tactile linguistic features of phonology, morphology, semantics and syntax were explored. The linguistic features of tactile language were found to involve a potential unique and complex structure based on direction, speed, and acceleration of movements, pressure, and body position. It is discussed how tactile languages, if they exist, can be studied from its unique bodily-tactile nature and not as a modification of visual sign languages.
Highlights
Some research papers and practice reports have been published on the tactile adaptation of visual sign languages among deaf sign language users with acquired blindness [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]
This study indicates that some unique tactile language structure elements may exists, which will not be identified from a mere visual sign language analysis
Similar to what is observed in visual sign languages [44], this study demonstrates the congenital deafblind child’s use of tactile classifiers with multiple information and multimorphemic tactile units
Summary
Some research papers and practice reports have been published on the tactile adaptation of visual sign languages among deaf sign language users with acquired blindness [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]. Many of these people have Usher syndrome which in most cases are characterized by congenital deafness and progressive loss of vision, resulting in functional blindness in early or mid-adulthood [9]. The congenital deafblind child has to acquire language within the tactile modality, because that is the primarily communicative access to the world
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