An Overview of Sign linguistic research in Asia

Abstract

  This paper presents a brief overview of the development of sign linguistic research in Asia since 1970s. On the basis of 300+ academic publications in English, it is found that most of these research papers have centred on only a handful of sign languages in Asia, with the remaining majority receiving little or no attention in the academia. Apart from highlighting the latest research topics of the relatively more researched sign languages, we have identified several concerning issues that call for more concerted efforts in the support of further research development in Asia.