September 23 is Sign Languages Day

Happy Sign Languages Day (also known as the International Day of Sign Languages)! September 23 has been proclaimed by the UN General Assembly as the International Day of Sign Languages in order to raise awareness of the importance of sign language in the recognition of the human rights of people who are deaf.

It’s a timely reminder to support greater accessibility to sign language everywhere, to make the world more inclusive for Deaf people across the globe.

As the UN notes, “Sign languages are fully fledged natural languages, structurally distinct from the spoken languages. There is also an international sign language, which is used by deaf people in international meetings and informally when travelling and socializing. It is considered a pidgin form of sign language that is not as complex as natural sign languages and has a limited lexicon.”

The World Federation of the Deaf estimates that across the world, there are currently more than 70 million deaf people, who collectively use more than 300 different sign languages!

Celebrate Sign Languages Day by learning to sign a word or letter of the alphabet as your first step. Learn more at https://www.un.org/en/observances/sign-languages-day.