Welcome to our list of Start ASL Deaf History articles! Here you will find all of our articles related to Deaf history and the history of sign language.
Start here with our main article: History of Sign Language – Deaf History
Juliette Gordon Low: A Deaf Champion Who Wouldn’t Hear “No” Each year Girl Scouts all around the US celebrate October 31st as their movement’s Founder’s Day. The date was chosen to commemorate the birthday of Girl Scouts founder Juliette Gordon Low. Blazing a trail for countless young girls to follow and living a life of […]
OSU Led the Way to Learn American Sign Language With its ASL Bachelor’s Degree If your desire was to learn American Sign Language (ASL) in the 1800’s fewer educational organizations could offer more value than Oklahoma State University. Founded on December 25, 1890 in Stillwater, OK under the name Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College, Oklahoma […]
Have you ever been fascinated when people say, “Do you speak sign language?” Sign language isn’t a spoken language, so it does not really make sense to say “speak” as oppose to “know”. American Sign Language is a developed language that is made of hand movements, body language, gestures, and facial expressions. Many foreign languages […]
Deaf Associations are businesses and Deaf organizations that provide services for Deaf people so they can be independent and successful, and there are so many. Have you heard that term before “by, for, of”? These are organizations that are established by the Deaf, For the Deaf, such as resources, and consist of mostly Deaf people. […]
There are a lot of holidays we celebrate in the United States. Some of them are national holidays while others are religious holidays. Other countries have their holidays which also are celebrated in the US if the family is from that country. There are also important dates such as awareness days, weeks, or months; for […]
St. Patrick’s Day is an Irish holiday that occurs on March 17th. During this holiday, people tend to wear green so leprechauns will not see and pinch them. The real reason why people get pinched when they do not wear green is because it is sign of dishonor and disrespect to St. Patrick. The history […]
Julia Brace was the first Deafblind person before Laura Bridgman and Helen Keller. Julia Brace was born, in that part of Hartford County, Connecticut, that is now Newington on June 13, 1807. Julia had a normal childhood. She was sent to school where she learned to read and spell two word syllables, or when she […]
There are many Deaf actors and movies that have American Sign Language. Not only are Deaf people have a successful career in acting. Deaf people are successful in other ways not just in the media industry. There are several Deaf people and hearing people who have supported the Deaf community that have made Deaf history. […]
American Sign Language is its own language that is used by the Deaf community. American Sign Language has its own history of where it derived from and the Deaf community has it own culture. Here are some facts that make American Sign Language (ASL) unique as its own language: ASL is not universal as it […]
Did you know American Sign Language is not universal? In the article, “Is American Sign Language Universal”, it talked about whether or not American Sign Language is universal, in other words, ASL is used in all countries all over the world. The answer is no. American Sign Language is only unique to the US whereas […]
Many people are inspired by American Sign Language (ASL) from signing in movies, in public, or by a d/Deaf/Hoh friend or d/Deaf/Hoh family member. This inspiration pushes them to want to learn ASL and for some people to choose ASL interpreter as their career choice. Becoming an American Sign Language Interpreter is a popular career […]
by Ksenia Muhutdinova | 6 October 2021 Deaf culture is the culture made up of Deaf people that’s based on sign language and values, as well traditions and behavior norms that are specific to the Deaf community. It is the heart of the Deaf community. The Deaf community is made up of culturally Deaf people […]
by Faith Ekart | 29 September 21 Sign language has been around for a really long time. People don’t know exactly when it started, but people have been using types of sign language since the beginning of time. Just like how babies use hand signals to communicate before they can talk, that’s what deaf people […]
Video Relay Services (VRS) are a type of video relay services that many Deaf, hard of hearing, Deafblind people and people with speech disabilities use to communicate to hearing callers with the help of an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter (Wikipedia: VRS, 2021). In a VRS call, Deaf/hard of hearing callers can see the […]
Anne Sullivan is one of the most well-known teachers in history. She is best known for being the teacher of Helen Keller and the subject of movies such as The Miracle Worker. Anne Sullivan Articles by Students Anne Sullivan by Annie (Plattsmouth, Nebraska) | May 4, 2010 I believe the person I admire most in the history […]
Many people ask, “Is American Sign Language (ASL) universal?” Well, the answer is no, it is not universal. American Sign Language is unique and is commonly used within the United States and Canada. Canada actually has two official sign languages known as American Sign Language and Quebec Sign Language (LSQ). However, people from outside […]
William Stokoe – or William C. Stokoe Jr. – changed the course of American Sign Language history. Before Stokoe, ASL was not seen as a real language. It was seen as meaningless gestures or pantomime and because of this, ASL wasn’t even considered for use in the education of deaf children–a type of education they […]
Laurent Clerc played a significant part in the history of American Sign Language and was the first deaf teacher of the deaf in America. He was also among the first of these educators in the world and has been known as “The Apostle of the Deaf in America” and “The Father of the Deaf.” Not […]
Ludwig Van Beethoven was completely deaf for the last part of his life and yet managed to produce some of the greatest music of all time. Beethoven Articles by Students Who is your favorite person from deaf history? Beethoven by Kimberly Brunner | April 12, 2017 “Oh, I love this song.” My Grandmother smiles and […]
Laura Redden Searing was born in 1839 and is best known for being the first deaf female journalist. She was sent by the St. Louis Republican to cover the American Civil War in 1860 and lived a life where she never allowed her deafness or age to hold her back. Laura Redden Searing Articles by Students […]
Julia Brace was a deaf-blind girl who was born before both Laura Bridgman and Helen Keller. She was successfully educated, but lost the credit as the first to Helen Keller. Julia Brace Articles by Students Julia Brace by Anonymous | October 6, 2016 The famous deaf person I choose was Julia Brace. She lived a […]
Helen Keller is an internationally acclaimed author and lecturer. And that is so amazing because she was deaf and blind. When I was in elementary school, we learned all about Helen Keller. I completed a report on her and dressed up as Anne Sullivan in the fourth grade. Helen is the most famous deaf-blind person […]
A big event that occurred in Deaf history was the Deaf President Now (DPN) movement. DPN was a huge protest at Gallaudet University that started in March of 1988. The students, faculty, and staff at the university as well as the national deaf community were united and fought together for one clear goal… To finally […]
Laura Bridgman was the first deaf-blind person to learn language. When you think about the first deaf-blind child to be educated, you will most likely think of Helen Keller. In reality, though, Helen’s frustrated teacher was not the first to attempt this type of education. She was born on December 21, 1829 in Hanover, New […]
Dummy Hoy made history as the first deaf major league baseball player. He’s also not famous just because he was deaf; he was also a remarkably talented and skilled baseball player. Dummy was anything but dumb. Baseball is known as America’s sport, and Hoy had a lot to do with what happens in baseball today. […]
Dr. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet is probably the most influential person in the history of American Sign Language. Gallaudet, along with Laurent Clerc, was responsible for starting the first free public school for the deaf in the United States. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet Articles by Students Who is your favorite person from deaf history? Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet […]
When Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet died in 1851, his youngest son Edward Miner Gallaudet continued his legacy in deaf education, played a big part in the history of American Sign Language, and founded the first college for the deaf. Edward Miner Gallaudet Articles by Students Who is your favorite person from deaf history? Edward Miner Gallaudet by […]
George Veditz was a former president of the National Association of the Deaf of the United States and was one of the first to film American Sign Language. George William Veditz Articles by Students George Veditz by Alyssa Mattingly | October 20, 2016 “ASL is not just a different language, it is a different medium […]
Geronimo Cardano played a significant role in the history of sign language–particularly in the history of deaf education. Cardano was an Italian mathematician and physician. He discovered in the 1500s that the deaf were able to be educated by using written words. Before his theory, people believed that it was impossible for people to learn […]
by Madeline Huwaldt | October 3, 2018 Gallaudet University was founded in 1864 and is located in Washington D.C and is a federally chartered private school. Originally Gallaudet was a grammar school for deaf and blind children. Gallaudet was the first official school for deaf and hard of hearing people to get a higher education […]
When you are 9 years old, you don’t think about making history. Alice Cogswell made history at the age of 9 by sparking the beginning of the creation of American Sign Language and American deaf education. Alice is known as the young deaf girl who inspired Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet–the man who began the education of […]
by Alyssa Weeks | November 14, 2017 My favorite person in deaf history is Marie Heurtin. You might know her as the French Hellen Keller but to many she is not known at all. Her story was one of trials and tribulation. Marie was a deaf-blind girl who had absolutely no manners and behaved like […]
We all know Alexander Graham Bell (known as AGB in the Deaf community) as the inventor of the telephone. That makes him a good guy, right? Creating a way for man to effectively communicate across long distances? Not so much. Bell was an innovator and educator. However, he was also an oppressor, and this side […]
by Marcus McNeal | November 29, 2016 “Everybody has to start somewhere. You have your whole future ahead of you. Perfection doesn’t happen right away.” (Haruki Murakami, 2006). The quote speaks a lot to the person who I’ve chosen to write about, who is known as Pedro Ponce de Leon. A 16th century Spanish Monk, […]
No Hearing People Here! Deaf people have been more in the spotlight than you know. There are so many famous deaf people and famous hard of hearing people who have been the founders of many organizations, been pioneers in deaf education, written books, painted famous artworks, held world records in sports, acted on several well-known […]
The events that occurred in the history of sign language are actually pretty shocking. How deaf people experience life today is directly related to how they were treated in the past. It wasn’t long ago when the deaf were harshly oppressed and denied even their fundamental rights. The are many famous deaf people who have […]
The history of American Sign Language didn’t truly begin until 1814 when deaf education was introduced to the United States. There is virtually no information about American Sign Language history before this time. Early in the 1800s, there were only a few thousand deaf Americans. No standard signed language existed at this time, but various […]
The question of who invented sign language has sparked much debate and has a vague answer. If you want to know who invented sign language, you need to analyze the events in Deaf History. Some scientists credit mankind as the inventors of the first sign language. This is probably true. Early man, before spoken language, probably […]
Andrew Foster is a very important person in Deaf history. He was the first African American Deaf person to earn a Bachelor’s Degree from Gallaudet University and is known as the “Father of the Deaf” of Africa because he founded the first school for the deaf there and went on to establish 31 more. Andrew […]
by Nicole Colterman (08/27/2020) Martha’s Vineyard, home of astonishing landscapes, fishing towns, marvelous summer homes and one of the first known deaf communities in the United States. From the late 1600’s to early 1900’s Martha’s Vineyard had 1 in every 155 people born deaf, where the rest of America was 1 in every 5,700. The […]
Abbe de L’Epee, a French Catholic priest, founded the first social and religious association for deaf people around 1750. L’Epee’s full name was Abbe Charles Michel de L’Epee and he was one of the most important people in the history of sign language. A common story retold throughout the history of sign language claims that […]
