Lexicography

Making and maintaining dictionaries of New Zealand Sign Language.

NZSL Share

NZSL Share (2019-current) is an online community space for New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) users to share and discuss new signs that have not yet been recorded in NZSL dictionaries.

• signs for new concepts and new technology
• signs related to topics in the news
• signs that are only used by small groups of people for specialised work or study
• names of famous people, like politicians or actors
• things such as brand names, that would not normally be included in a dictionary.

Information contributed to NZSL Share will help in the DSRU's lexicographical research and documentation

A Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language

This dictionary project (1992-1997) was the first major work of the DSRU. The project was carried out by a team of Deaf and hearing researchers, led by Professor Graeme Kennedy, in collaboration with the national Deaf Association. Over 90 members of the New Zealand Deaf community assisted with data compilation. The dictionary contained 4,500 entries. It is no longer available in print.

A Concise Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language

This concise edition (2002) contains 2,500 commonly used signs selected from the previous Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language. Although now superseded by an online dictionary, the Concise Dictionary is still available in print.

Order A Concise Dictionary of NZSL from Bridget Williams Books

NZSL Online Dictionary

This project (2008-2011) built upon the database of the previous print dictionaries to develop a multimedia NZSL Online Dictionary. The website was launched in 2011. Content was updated and video clips were added to demonstrate how each sign is produced. Example sentence videos illustrate how each sign is used in a natural context. A large proportion of the usage examples are based on a corpus of authentic NZSL conversation and narrative data.

A user requirements survey was undertaken prior to the creation of this dictionary, to determine dictionary user needs and preferences. A user study was carried out in 2015 and  led to some format changes.

The NZSL Online Dictionary (also available as a mobile app) has around 5,000 entries.  Expansion of content is ongoing through specific projects; for example, adding signs relevant to young children, and New Zealand geographical place names in 2017.

The dictionary can be searched in several ways: by English word, by Māori word, by features of a sign (handshape and location), by topics, and by other categories.

The NZSL Online Dictionary was Highly Commended in the Australia NZ Internet Awards, 2011.

Funding

The NZSL Online Dictionary was made possible by an Encouraging and Supporting Innovation (ESI) grant from the Tertiary Education Commission.

Te Reo Māori translation in the online dictionary was funded by the Mā Te Reo Fund and quality assured by Te Taura Whiri / Māori Language Commission.

Further web redevelopment and content additions to the NZSL Online Dictionary have been funded by several grants through the Ministry of Social Development and the NZSL Fund.

NZSL Share was made possible by funding from the JR McKenzie Trust’s Deaf Development Fund (now closed) and the NZSL Fund.

Reports, presentations and publications

Recent lexical expansion in New Zealand Sign Language - context, scope and mechanisms Current Issues in Language Planning (forthcoming).

NZSL Online Dictionary 8 years on: Adapting  to a changing environment through user research. Australex 2019 conference presentation.

McKee, Rachel and David McKee. 2018.  The Online Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language: A  case study of contemporary sign language lexicography.  In The Routledge Handbook of Lexicography.

McKee, Rachel, and Mireille Vale. 2017. “Sign Language Lexicography.” In International Handbook of Modern Lexis and Lexicography, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-45369-4_34-1

Vale, Mireille. 2015. A study of the users of  an online sign language dictionary.  In eLex 2015 conference proceedings.

The Social Context of New Zealand Sign Language lexicography. Australex 2015 conference presentation.

McKee, Rachel and David McKee. 2013. Making an Online Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language. Lexikos, 23.

McKee, David, Rachel McKee, Sara Pivac Alexander, Lynette Pivac, and Mireille Vale. 2011. Online Dictionary of New Zealand Sign Language. Wellington: Deaf Studies Research Unit, Victoria University of Wellington.

McKee, David, and Graeme D. Kennedy. 2000. “A Lexical Comparison of Signs from American, Australian and New Zealand Sign Languages.” In The Signs of Language Revisited: An Anthology To Honor Ursula Bellugi and Edward Klima, edited by Karen Emmorey and Harlan Lane, 49–76. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Technical support

Ackama - NZSL Online Dictionary and NZSL Share web and mobile applications