American Sign Language Classifiers and Descriptive Protocol Guide

Fundamentals of ASL Classifiers

A classifier (CL) in American Sign Language (ASL) is a visual mechanism used to represent ideas, objects, or people without relying on one-for-one individual signs. Classifiers allow a signer to convey a significantly higher level of spatial, physical, and motion detail than standard vocabulary signs allow.

Core Functions of Classifiers

  • Classifiers show four fundamental visual aspects of an entity:

    • Movement: How an entity moves through space.

    • Location: Where an entity is positioned relative to other things.

    • Description: What an entity looks like physical characteristics.

    • Appearance: How an entity presents visually in context.

  • Usage Mechanics: Before using a classifier, a signer must first indicate the person or object being referenced (the noun). Once the entity is established, a classifier is used in its place to demonstrate its appearance, precise spatial placement, direction, and manner of motion.

  • Total Categories: There are 8 distinct types of classifiers recognized in ASL.

Core Questions for Classifier Selection

When determining how to construct and execute a classifier, ask the following three questions:

  1. What handshape could I use to represent what I'm talking about?

  2. What movement do I need to show?

  3. Do I need to add a Non-Manual Marker (NMM)?

Handshape Selection Rules

ASL establishes specific rules for assigning handshapes to physical shapes and entity categories. Selecting the appropriate handshape is the first step in constructing a classifier.

Standard Handshape Rules and Conventions

  • 1: Represents lines or people walking.

  • Bent V: Represents sitting or chairs.

  • F: Represents small round objects.

  • 4: Represents multiple lines.

  • Bent 5: Represents curls or the action of plopping down objects.

  • 3: Represents a car or vehicle.

  • ILY: Represents a plane.

Adaptation and Creativity

  • If the subject being described does not fit into one of the explicit rules above, signers must adapt creatively to pick an appropriate handshape.

  • Facility with picking accurate classifier handshapes improves directly with practice.

Spatial Movement and Action

Classifier movement is modified to depict either static visual arrangements of groups or dynamic kinetic trajectories of individual objects.

Showing Multiple Entities and Spatial Formations

Movement can be applied to handshapes to depict the arrangement or distribution of multiple objects:

  • A row of chairs

  • A long line of people

Showing Kinetic Action and Trajectory

Movement demonstrates the exact path and nature of an object in motion:

  • A person walking

  • A car turning left

  • A plane taking off

Non-Manual Markers (NMM) and Mouth Morphemes

Non-Manual Markers (NMMs) and mouth morphemes are essential facial components paired with classifiers to provide essential details regarding size, speed, manner, and spatial relationships.

Size and Scale Morphemes

  • Ooo / OOO: Denotes small objects or small, skinny objects.

  • Mmm / MMM: Denotes regular or medium-sized objects.

  • Cha / CHA: Denotes large objects.

  • LUCH: Denotes massive or huge objects.

Manner, Speed, and Distance Markers

  • Puckered lips: Indicates slow, leisurely movement.

  • CS: Indicates close to.

  • LRLR: Indicates far away.

  • Th: Indicates careless or sloppy action.

  • Pbr: Indicates fast speed or rapid movement.

Descriptive Classifiers (DCL) and Character Description

Definition of Descriptive Classifiers

  • A Descriptive Classifier (DCL) is a specific type of classifier utilized to describe the visual traits, shape, texture, pattern, or physical details of a person or object.

Systematic Protocol for Character Description

When describing a character or person using DCLs, always proceed systematically in the following order:

  1. State their gender.

  2. State their age.

  3. Begin at their head and work sequentially downward.

  4. Describe their body shape/appearance and what they are wearing.

Interactive Descriptive Activity Protocol

To practice using descriptive features and classifier techniques, follow this activity structure:

  • Setup: Only one partner looks at the board displaying a target character.

  • Execution: The partner viewing the board describes the character to their partner.

    • Restriction: Describe only the character's clothing, face, and physical features. Do not describe what the character is doing.

  • Identification: The listening partner attempts to identify the character based solely on the description.

  • Verification: When the listener thinks they know the answer, they must finger-spell the character's name to their describing partner.

  • Turn Rotation: If the guessed name is correct, the partners switch roles for the next character.