PluralizationPluralization in ASL is often expressed with inflection of signs or classifiers with several different pluralizer morphemes, which may involve manual, spacial, or motive modulation.
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Point 1: Handshape MOrphemes
There are a number of different handshapes which signify plurality in ASL. An example would be the classifier handshapes sometimes called "claw hand", which can be used to show a multitude of stars in the sky, or the 5 handshape, which can show a crowd of people or a herd of horses.
There are also a number of handshapes and signs which themselves communicate the quantity - for example the signs FEW and MANY. The ASL numbers are also quantity signs, which show a specific number rather than a general quantity. Number signs, other quantity signs, and classifiers can be all used after the noun to show plurality and quantity - either approximately (i.e. "HORSE "scads of"") or precisely (e.g. "HORSE FIVE")
Some signs can incorporate plural handshape morphemes into them, such as pronouns, (WE can become WE-THREE or WE-FOUR). This is also related to the discussion of time signs, which can incorporate numbers into them, such as FIVE-O-CLOCK, FIVE-DAYS, THREE-HOURS, TWO-MINUTES, or THREE-YEARS-OLD. Some verbs can also incorporate number handshapes into them, such as GIVE-TO, which can be modulated to GIVE-TWO-TO, as in the sentence "I give two pens to several people". Another example is the verb "GO-BY-FOOT", which can be modulated to "TWO-GO-BY-FOOT" though the modulation of the handshapes to the handshape for the sign TWO.
There are also a number of handshapes and signs which themselves communicate the quantity - for example the signs FEW and MANY. The ASL numbers are also quantity signs, which show a specific number rather than a general quantity. Number signs, other quantity signs, and classifiers can be all used after the noun to show plurality and quantity - either approximately (i.e. "HORSE "scads of"") or precisely (e.g. "HORSE FIVE")
Some signs can incorporate plural handshape morphemes into them, such as pronouns, (WE can become WE-THREE or WE-FOUR). This is also related to the discussion of time signs, which can incorporate numbers into them, such as FIVE-O-CLOCK, FIVE-DAYS, THREE-HOURS, TWO-MINUTES, or THREE-YEARS-OLD. Some verbs can also incorporate number handshapes into them, such as GIVE-TO, which can be modulated to GIVE-TWO-TO, as in the sentence "I give two pens to several people". Another example is the verb "GO-BY-FOOT", which can be modulated to "TWO-GO-BY-FOOT" though the modulation of the handshapes to the handshape for the sign TWO.
Point 2: Location Morphemes
Spacial modulation can be used several different ways. One way is to simply index multiple locations: for example: HORSE THERE1+THERE2+THERE3. Another is to use classifiers in different locations, for instance to show a row of houses. NMS can be used as well to further emphasize or multiply the plurality conveyed.
Classifiers can also show whether the plural items are ordered, and if so in what way. Are the papers spread all over the desk in a haphazard fashion, or are they neatly stacked? This can be shown by a change to the locations of the papers, and also by using one hand as reference point, and using appropriate NMS.
The same methods of pluralizing and showing the organization of physical things can also be used for abstract or discourse-level organization. For example, the sign which signals a list of four concepts has incorporated the number sign "FOUR" into it. Or, for example, if one wanted to compare boys and girls, one could establish boys in one location and girls in the other, thus using pluralization to show two groups. This is abstract because all the boys in the world and all the girls in the world cannot actually be gathered into spheres on the signer's right and left. However, the concepts of boys and girls can be symbolically "organized" in space the same way that visible things can be literally organized in space.
Another interesting thing to note about this example is that the plural concepts of "boys" and "girls", have each became grammatically "singular", as a group. If indexing the groups (for example, so say that "boys tend to love girls"), one could use singular indexing, even though there are many boys being referred to, because the "group" is a now a singular conceptual entity.
Classifiers can also show whether the plural items are ordered, and if so in what way. Are the papers spread all over the desk in a haphazard fashion, or are they neatly stacked? This can be shown by a change to the locations of the papers, and also by using one hand as reference point, and using appropriate NMS.
The same methods of pluralizing and showing the organization of physical things can also be used for abstract or discourse-level organization. For example, the sign which signals a list of four concepts has incorporated the number sign "FOUR" into it. Or, for example, if one wanted to compare boys and girls, one could establish boys in one location and girls in the other, thus using pluralization to show two groups. This is abstract because all the boys in the world and all the girls in the world cannot actually be gathered into spheres on the signer's right and left. However, the concepts of boys and girls can be symbolically "organized" in space the same way that visible things can be literally organized in space.
Another interesting thing to note about this example is that the plural concepts of "boys" and "girls", have each became grammatically "singular", as a group. If indexing the groups (for example, so say that "boys tend to love girls"), one could use singular indexing, even though there are many boys being referred to, because the "group" is a now a singular conceptual entity.
Point 3: Movement Morphemes
The movement morphemes which tend to go along with pluralization tend to be either a bouncing movement, or an arcing one. For example, to represent statues on a shelf, the "A" classifier can be repeated along the shelf with a slight bounce between each location, and a short rest at the location of each statue. Indexing statues in this case would also be done with a slight bounce with the index finger. However, if there are many statues, the movement may change to a rapid, sweeping motion across the shelf. In this case, the statues would be indexed with a rapid, sweeping motion of the index finger as well. If plurality is used in the context of a verb, especially in regards to the movement parameter, this is related to temporal aspect and distributional aspect (plurality of times, and plurality of subject/object locations), which will be discussed later in this website.