American Sign Language

Many non-hearing people use American Sign Language to communicate. It is its own language; it is not a literal translation of spoken English, and it is distinct from French Sign Language, Arabic Sign Language, Russian Sign Language and others. Some signs use one's entire upper body. ASL has gestures and movements for many words and concepts, and an alphabet for finger-spelling each letter of the American alphabet. The ASL Dictionary Project provides an American Sign Language alphabet chart online.