International Day of Sign Languages 2023 | 25 Sep 2023

Source: PIB

Why in News?

On the occasion of International Day of Sign Languages (23rd September), the Government of India has introduced several initiatives to improve communication and accessibility for the hearing-impaired.

  • Initiatives for the hearing-impaired include online Indian Sign Language (ISL) courses, introduction of 267 signs for financial terms in ISL, a comprehensive ISL dictionary, tailored courses for special schools, and a WhatsApp-based video relay service for improved communication.

What is International Day of Sign Languages?

  • About:
    • International Day of Sign Languages is an annual event that promotes the linguistic and cultural diversity of deaf communities around the world.
    • In 2017, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 23rd September as the official day to celebrate the International Day of Sign Languages.
    • It is an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of sign languages in the lives of deaf communities and the need to protect them as an essential part of human diversity.
    • Millions of people around the world use sign language as their primary means of communication.
      • They are complex visual-gestural communication systems with their own grammar and syntax.
  • Theme of 2023:
    • A World Where Deaf People Can Sign Anywhere.
  • History:
    • The World Federation of the Deaf (WFD), a federation of 135 national federations of the deaf, proposed the idea for the day on behalf of the estimated 70 million deaf people around the world.
    • The Permanent Mission of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Nations, along with 97 other UN Member States, sponsored a resolution, which was unanimously adopted in December, 2017.
    • The date of September 23 was chosen to honour the day in 1951 when the WFD was established.
    • In 2018, as part of the International Week of the Deaf, the International Day of Sign Languages was observed for the first time.
  • Status of Deaf People:
    • According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are over 70 million deaf people in the world.
    • More than 80% of them live in underdeveloped countries. They collectively use more than 300 different sign languages.