Brazilian sign language dictionaries and their contributions

Abstract

Nowadays, there are plenty of language sign dictionaries, which are printed or in digital format, made by deaf people, by educational institutions which qualify professionals in sign language or by private initiative. It is a necessary reality due to the complexity of signs and, besides that, these dictionaries enable the maintenance of the necessary standardization during a conversation or during the work of Sing Language Interpreters and Translators. These dictionaries, in printed or digital versions, describe phonological, grammatical and semantic information about the signs and the words, which eases and allows a better comprehension of the sign. In printed dictionaries it is possible to see variations of forms, such as: pictures, sign description, sign writing, drawings and translation to the oral language. On the other hand, digital dictionaries enable the search by alphabetical order in Portuguese or by hand configuration, in which signs are represented by shootings which contain their description and definition. This article traces the history of registered dictionaries in sign language and reports the influence of France in the first Libras dictionary. Here, we intend to cover from the appearance of the first sign language dictionary in the world to the dictionaries which are more used nowadays in Brazil. The conclusion brings reflections about the relevance of these dictionaries and instigates the need of creating dictionaries in specialty areas, due the lack of signs for many terms used on the daily academic life.