Setting the Standard: An Overview of the History and Politics of Prohibiting and Promoting a National Japanese Sign Language

Abstract

Japanese Sign Language (JSL) is the collective name for the natural visual-spatial languages used by deaf people in Japan. While they all share similar characteristics, they were formed in isolation or in limited contact of each other, causing regional variations in the way words are signed.This paper will give an overview of the reasons for the absence of a nation-wide sign language by exploring the origins of deaf education in Japan starting from the Meiji Era and the development of JSL at schools for the deaf and alumni associations. Next, the historical and current factors which prohibit the use or the spread of JSL, particularly policies by the Ministry of Education which stress the importance of oral-aural based education will be discussed. Finally, how community, government and non-profit agencies, while sometimes at odds, promote the use of sign language