The use of compound signs by deaf students of the Libras Language and literature program at UFPI: A study from a sociolinguistic perspective and cognitive approach

Abstract

This research, focusing on the formation of compound signs in Libras, began from observations made during Libras II classes, a curricular component of the Libras Language course at Federal University of Piauí (UFPI). Our main objective was to answer the following question: What sociolinguistic and cognitive factors explain the variations observed in the production and use of compound signs in Libras by deaf students in the Libras Language course at UFPI, in contrast to the forms described in the academic literature? We sought to analyze, from the perspective of Sociolinguistics and Cognitive Linguistics, the phenomena that may influence the formation, meaning, use and understanding of compound signs in Libras by deaf students in the 2nd period of the Libras Language course at UFPI. We conducted a qualitative field study with a descriptive analytical approach, using three deaf students as informants. We used 21 projected nonverbal images representing compound signs from academic works, such as: Quadros and Karnopp (2004), Felipe (2006), Takahira (2012), Minussi and Takahira (2013), Figueiredo Silva and Sell (2009), and the Novo Deit-Libras dictionary by Capovilla, Raphael and Mauricio (2009), Langacker (1987, 2011), Goldberg (1995). After collecting the data, we mapped the signs produced by the participants, subdividing them into two main categories: animals and people. During the analysis, we identified several cognitive and social linguistic regularities underlying the perception of the three deaf students of the Letras-Libras Course in Teresina-PI, regarding the formation, convention and use of compound signs.
Keywords: Morphology of Libras. Sociolinguistics. Linguistic Cognitive. Composite signals. Deaf students.