“Astronomy” as it is represented in Sign Language in different countries.

A project funded by the International Astronomical Union’s Office of Astronomy for Development, in collaboration with Dominique Proust (IP) and Beatriz García.

As a first step, we have translated the encyclopedic dictionary of astronomy for French Sign Language “Les main dans les étoiles” into Spanish and English.

We are now to developing a long-term project to collect the different signs in several languages, starting with a selection of 47 words that the experts of the IAU’s Commission for Inclusion have agreed upon being amongst the most commonly used in astronomy education and outreach. The languages involved include German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese and Polish, among others.  a unique language for the deaf worldwide, associated with astronomical terms.

The first list of astronomy signs is already available at this link.

To learn more, please read this IAU Press Release about the project.