 Well, thank you very much for coming. Shall we start? My name is Daisuke Shinagawa. Sorry, I'm not a staff member of SOAS, but I'm a meeting scholar here. And today we will have a talk by Professor Mokutaka Kamei. And I'll briefly introduce him. He's a professor at IT Prefecture University and also now is based in Paris. And I'm sitting there as a visiting researcher, and they call me what it used to be in Siensoseya, right? And he's very famous scholar in Japan in terms of the sign language studies. Actually, he started his fieldwork in West Africa I think something like 20 years ago, I think. And actually, this is not his first visit here in SOAS. He's been here just for 20 years, I think, just before going to his first field trip to Kamei. So this is his first visit for him. And well, so the title of the talk is the creation of a contact sign language in Western Central French-speaking Africa. Good afternoon, everyone. I'm very happy to be here with you. Thank you very much for your presence here. As Shinagawa-san told you, this is the second visit to this university, SOAS. It was 1996. Just before my first visit to Cameroon, I visited here, the library of SOAS, to start my African studies when I was a young student. So this is the second visit. And I'm very happy to be here with the results of my fieldwork for around 20 years in African areas. So thank you and please enjoy discussions with me around one hour, one hour and a half like this. So let me introduce myself a little. I'm a cultural anthropologist and I have been doing my fieldwork in Western Central Africa since 1996. My doctoral thesis, the topic of my doctoral thesis was on how to get children in the tropical rainforest of Cameroon. Also, I started my fieldwork with multiple, various Africa minorities like Hannah Gatherers, children with a school education, people with disabilities, and especially today's topic is deaf committees in African countries, especially in French-speaking African countries. Let me introduce a little more. I am a certified Japanese sign language interpreter and I am a husband of a deaf partner. So in Japan, I'm always living with using Japanese sign language. When I visit African countries, I use local African sign languages. Now I'm living in France for several months and now I am trying to start to learn French sign language in Paris. And yesterday, I met for the first time British deaf person and I first tried to learn only alphabet A, B, C, D, E, like this as British deaf way. So mainly I'm living in Japan with Japanese sign language, also working with African local sign languages. And I'm very interested in the various situations of deaf committees in European countries like France and Britain. So today's purpose of the seminar is, in French-speaking Western Central Africa, the situations of sign languages and deaf culture have not been clarified yet by linguists and anthropologists. Yes, there are several studies, for example, in Nigeria, in Kenya, in South Africa, et cetera. But most of the researchers have been conducted in English-speaking East or South Africa. So in most of the French-speaking African countries like Western Central Africa, very few researchers can be found. So I started my fieldwork in Africa in 1997 with the method of participant observation in African deaf communities with using their local sign languages. And participant observation. This is an anthropological term. That means I myself have to learn their local languages. And I try to use with them to be a friend or a community member to participate in their everyday life, eat together, live together, talk together. And I learn multiple aspects of their culture. This is the name of the method, anthropological method, participant observation. In this seminar, with the data I collected in nine countries in Africa, I will report the outline of the history and the actuality of context sign language created with American sign language and spoken in French in this zone. Also, some projects of sign language dictionaries in Africa will be introduced. So at the background, so these two maps are very important to start my seminar. In Africa, it is said that American sign language, ASL, is widely diffused, not only in English-speaking Africa, but also in French-speaking Africa. There are two maps of Africa. Red map means the distribution of spoken French as their official language. Around 20 countries adopt French as their official language. On the other hand, this blue map shows the diffusion of American sign language. So when we see these maps, it's clear that the diffusion of American sign language covers almost all the French-speaking African countries. But the reason why it is that purpose of this presentation. So I try to show four questions to be solved in this conference. First, what were the historical backgrounds of the diffusion of ASL in West Africa? Second question, what kinds of sign language are used today in these areas? Third question, what research activities are conducted today, especially in French-speaking West of Africa? And fourth question, what kinds of international research exchanges related to African sign language are conducted today? So I would like to answer these questions at the end of this seminar. Other method, when my first visit in Cameroon 2, Cameroon was 1996, when I was a doctoral student. And I studied my work with Hunter-Gatherer's children in the forest. But next year, that means I stayed for around two years at that time. So in 1996, I arrived at Cameroon and studied my fieldwork, my long stay and my fieldwork. And during my stay in Cameroon, I happened to meet a deaf person in the capital of Cameroon. And I started to add my second research topic to work with deaf communities in Africa. So in 1997, I started today. I continued my fieldwork in nine countries in Western Central Africa. I adopted participant observation and interviews with deaf communities using their local sign language. Yes, I visited nine countries. And mainly, I have been working in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, and several times in Senegal, three French-speaking countries. Others countries are about other countries. I visited only once or twice for around two and three weeks or one month. Not so long stay, but mainly in three countries. So my methods of research is something like anthropological way, for example, participant observation. This is the example of the observation in the field. This is deaf church, deaf persons, deaf Christians get together to pray and learn Bible. So I participate and talk with them in their local sign language. I do many, many, many times interviews with deaf persons, especially for around 50 years, 60 years deaf persons to learn about the experience and life history and so on. And we're using myself in sign language. Also, I'm collecting all the photographs to clarify the history of deaf communities and deaf education in these areas. For example, this is the first photograph of the deaf school in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. It started with around four students. And now it became a huge school with more than 100 students like this. But I understand that I can clarify that history of the deaf community with these materials. And I often use interviews with all the photos that I show. I collect all the photos and show to the old interviewees and talk with them in sign language. And they start to talk about their history, their life history with observing these photographs. This is a very good way to remind, to hear the life history. And also, I'm doing some filming. There is recording movies of their signs. But later, I will show you some experiences about them. So let me start to answer the first question about the history. What were the historical backgrounds of the diffusion of the ASL in West Africa? During the era of colonial rule by France, Britain, and Belgium, there existed no school education for the deaf in West and Central Africa. It was 1957, just the year of the independence of the Republic of Ghana. When Andrew Foster, he was an American deaf pastor and educator, Andrew Foster founded the first school for the deaf in these areas in Akron. He also studied his activities in Nigeria in 1960. This missionary Christian mission for the deaf, this missionary mission group founded by Andrew Foster introduced American sign language ASL for the first time in Africa. So this is the photograph of Andrew Foster. And he was, what is important, he was deaf himself. He cannot hear. And also, he is an African-American, African-American. And often, he is called a father of deaf education in Africa and very, very much respected among deaf communities in Africa. So he was born in Alabama in the United States. And became deaf when he was 11 years old. After that, after he became deaf, he went to the school for the Black Deaf. Please note that at that time in the United States, there was a racially segregated educational system. That means there were, in Alabama, there are two schools for the deaf. One school for the deaf white children. And another school was a school for the deaf black children, racially separated educational system. Foster was an African-American. That's why he entered and rolled in a Black Deaf school in Alabama. And he graduated from Gallaudet University as its first African-American deaf student. At that time, there was a university also today it exists. There is a Gallaudet University. This is a university for deaf students. The majority was white students at that time. But Foster was enrolled in this university and graduated as its first African-American student. And later, he founded a mission and named Christian Mission for the Deaf. And started his work in African countries. But unfortunately, he died in the airplane crash in Africa in Rwanda in 1987. So I summarized his activity for around 30 years in Africa with this map. He founded around 31 deaf schools in 13 countries with the blue color. And also, he added several countries with deaf churches, churches for the deaf in four countries. So Total, his activity was he did his activities in 17 countries in Africa, 13 with schools, four countries with deaf churches. And this is a very important and interesting point. I counted 31 schools and classified it into two categories, which zone, English-speaking or French-speaking. And finally, I found that Foster founded six schools in English-speaking countries and 25 schools in French-speaking African countries. Yes, around 80% exist in French-speaking African countries. That's very interesting because Foster was an American. He was educated in English and American sign language. He was born and grew up in America and started his work in Africa. But it's a very interesting point. Foster did his activity mainly in French-speaking Africa. That's why this is a very important and interesting point. So later, I will add some explication. And let me see the number process of the number of Christian mission for the deaf schools. That is the group of Foster. He started his work in 1957, the year of the independence of Ghana. And he continued his work with around five schools for around 15 years. And later, he changed a little something in 1974 to add rapidly, every year for about four schools, five schools, to 31 schools for the deaf all over Africa. 1987, this is the year of the deaf he died in this year. This is the end of his activity in Africa. But we can obviously find there are two eras, two eras, two stages. First stage with several schools and second stage with rapid increasing situation. And simply saying, first stage means the activities only in English-speaking Africa. That means Ghana and Nigeria, two countries. And the second stage means the activities in French-speaking countries, around 11 countries. So how did he succeed in founding these schools as an American English-speaking man? This is important. In 1973, his mission founded the Christian Center for the Deaf in Ibadan, a training center in Ibadan, Nigeria for the purpose of the training for teachers in French-speaking countries. The series of teacher training courses in Ibadan started in 1976 and ended in 1987, invited this series of teacher training courses, invited at least 161 trainees from at least 19 countries in Africa. So this is an old photograph of the center, Christian Center for the Deaf in Ibadan, and he invited many students from all over the continent of Africa. And who managed this center and teacher training course? Mrs. and Mr. Foster. Andrew Foster was a Deaf-African-American. And Bertha Foster, his wife, she was also deaf, and she is from Germany. So Andrew and Bertha Foster, two deaf managers, organized everything to start the center, invite students, and organizing the serial teacher training courses, and et cetera. So this is an old photograph of the teacher training course conducted in, it was 1980. And 191 trainees came from 19 countries in Africa, and many trainees were deaf. Many trainees were deaf. Yes, there are some hearing students participated, but the majority were deaf people in this kind of class. So where did they come from? This is the map of CMD trainees countries who learned sign language in Foster's training courses, 19 countries. And this is the same map as I have shown in the beginning of this seminar. And this is the French-speaking African countries. So it is also clear that Foster's activity, Foster's teacher training courses covered almost all the French-speaking African countries like this. So who taught them? Because Foster was an American, and young students came from French-speaking African countries. So who taught them? This is a question. But I found that every year, the teachers from the Republic of Benin came to Ibadan to work as the sign language instructors for the training courses. Victor, Vodunu, Mario Stitu, Sergio Tamamo, Ahoyabu, et cetera, all were deaf instructors from the Republic of Benin. I would like to show the map of Benin. Benin is here, a very small country next to Nigeria. Nigeria is here, and Benin is next to Nigeria. And as you see here, Benin was a former French colony. So Benin is a French-speaking country. That's why Benin's teachers know how to read and write French. And they are deaf. They know sign language. That's why Foster, every year Foster invited teachers from Benin to Nigeria to let them teach other students. That's why Foster was an American, but he succeeded in teaching many, many students from French-speaking African countries. Yes, deaf teachers from the Republic of Benin, very important, key persons to understand the whole situation of the distribution of sign language in Africa. After the training, these trainees returned to their homeland to become teachers for deaf children and became the core persons who created their transnational sign language. The schools and churches for the deaf founded and managed by them in every country became the most important place for the signing communities. So I'd like to continue to the second question. What kinds of sign languages are used today in these areas? I'd like to explain the cases in English-speaking countries and cases in French-speaking countries. So in Western Central Africa, there are multiple countries with English-speaking countries like Nigeria, Ghana, and so on. And many, many French-speaking countries, former British colonies and former French colonies like this. Yes, by linguistic database, for example, Ethnologue, it reported that African sign languages now is also a source. Sign languages in Western Africa have been considered as the various dialects of ASL in the world. For example, in the page for ASL and Ethnologue, Language Database on the web reported that ASL was also used in various African countries like this. So it was regarded as the multiple dialects of American sign languages in Africa. American sign language in Africa. However, I conducted my fieldwork and observed the situation. And I found that the actuality was a little different. In Ghana and Nigeria, in English-speaking countries, the deaf communities have developed their own sign languages based on ASL, American Sign Language, spoken written in English, and the local signs created by the deaf. That means ASL, American Sign Language, was introduced by the mission. And they often used it with mixing some elements of spoken and written English. And also, they started to add some local signs in the African context. And today, they have developed their own sign languages and already have their own language names. Ghanaian sign language and Nigerian sign language. On the other hand, in French-speaking countries, the deaf communities have developed their own sign language based on ASL is the same situation. And with mixing spoken, written French, not English, but French with French, and local signs created by the deaf. However, they do not have their own sign language name for their local sign language. So this is an old photograph I took in Togo in 1979, just after the foundation of School for the Deaf in Togo in this country. And this photograph shows the situation of the language contact of two different languages. This teacher, he is a deaf teacher, deaf man. He is writing something on the blackboard. This is the written French he is writing, because Togo is a French-speaking country. So he is writing something in written French. On the other hand, children are using, this is, yes, yes, Jesus Christ. This word is borrowed from ASL. So they are using ASL-like signs with using written French. This is actually the situation of language contact in West African French countries. So I can summarize this situation with this model. During the colonial era, before the independence of African countries, France introduced spoken written French to Africa as the colonizer. Yes, but not introduced to French sign language, because French sign language was very oppressed, not allowed to use, they are not allowed to use sign language also in France. So they did not import French sign language to Africa. It kept only in Europe. And spoke in real French was introduced to Africa before the independence of African countries. After the independence of Africa, the mission, Foster's mission, started to introduce ASL, American Sign Language, to Africa. In English speaking African countries like Nigeria or Ghana, ASL and English met here in Africa and developed two languages, Ghanaian Sign Language and Nigerian Sign Language. But in French speaking countries, French and ASL met here on the continent of Africa. And this language contact created a new contact sign language in Africa. For example, what kind of modification, what kind of situation phenomena were found during among the French speaking African countries? For example, I'd like to show some small, some simple examples. For example, alphabet, A, B, C, D, E, F, G, from America, used in America, was introduced to African countries to show French characters, A, B, C, D, U, F, G. It's the same, just the same as signed in the United States. However, there are some letters found only in French and not used in America, in English like, U, A, C, D, U, A, C, D. The unique letters used only in French, but not used in America, in English. So they started to arrange something, some letters. For example, E. This is the letter E used in America, but they introduced it to French-speaking Africa, but no letter for accent, so they started to modify with movement, for example, accent, like this. Or accent, opposite side, U, accent, like this. Alphabet C introduced to Africa, French-speaking Africa, C, C, but no letter for this, C, D, U, with something. So they start to modify this letter to show this, C, D, U, C, D, U, like this. So they started to modify the system of American sign language to adapt their system useful and adapt their signs to the context of French community, especially like alphabet and other words. For example, L, U, this means water in English. And originally, ASL, American Sign Language, water is, the sign for water is like this, like this water used in America with alphabet W, W, water, water. But in French-speaking context, it's not W, it's E. So they started to modify this into E, O, O, O, like this. Or church in America, ASL, deaf people in America signs us with this word, church with alphabet C, C. But in the situation of French, Eglise, Eglise, it's not C, but E. So they started to change it into Eglise. Or in Africa, there are many Muslims. So churches are very important. And mosques are also important. So they started to create a new sign language, mosque, mosque, mosque, mosque with M, M, mosque. So originally in America, they used church, only church. But introduced to Africa. And they started to arrange it to adopt the sign word to French like Eglise, that means church. And created, invented a new word for African culture, mosque, mosque, that means mosque, with M, like this. Also another example, ah, word order is also important. Deaf community, deaf community, deaf community in the United States. However, in the French grammar, word order is not the same as English. That means community deaf, community deaf. So noun and adjective, noun and adjective. So they started to change the word order, community deaf. For example, other example, adjective noun, word order, has been changed into noun and adjective, like French grammar. And for example, compound words, for example, bonjour, that means hello, bonjour. Of course, in America, the word bonjour does not exist, and excuse me, I'm always living in France. So sometimes I haven't talked in France. I'm sorry. The word bonjour means hello, or good morning, or something in America. But in French-speaking African context, bonjour, the deaf people sign with bon, means good, bon. And jour means day, bonjour, bonjour, bonjour. So in America, good morning, good morning, or good afternoon, good afternoon, or hello, hello. Another expression exists. But the compound words like bonjour exist, do not exist in the United States. And African deaf people borrowed some vocabulary, was to invent the original compound words often used in French-speaking contexts. Pas encore, not yet, not yet. In America, they sign not yet, not yet, not yet, not yet, but in Africa, pas encore, expression pas encore, and that means not yet, is signed with not and again, pas encore, pas encore, pas encore. That means pas, not from America, and again encore from America, but created another expression, pas encore. That means not yet. This is the way. So it's not the copy of American sign, already adopted to French context, but not French sign language. This is the new expressions created among deaf communities only in Africa. So after the process of the language contact between spoken, written, French, and ASL, African deaf communities developed a new sign language with long words of ASL and grammatical characters of French. Through a long-term fieldwork that started in 1997 and the discussions among the deaf community, the sign language recently started, this sign language recently started to be considered as a newly constructed independent sign language that differs from ASL because of these characteristics. That means a large influence of spoken, written French and the vocabulary of African contexts. That means the second, first point I already explained for example, manioc, cassava, or plantain, plantain banana, banana for cook, et cetera. For example, food culture or religious words, et cetera. Many local vocabulary has been added and used together with the long words from ASL. So the field data and the products of several dictionaries of this sign language edited by deaf Africans support the recognition that the name of this sign language is now changing and that the identity of the African deaf community is also shifting. For example, this is a dictionary, sign language dictionary published in Benin edited by Serge Tamamo, a deaf pastor from Benin. And the title of this dictionary was something like this, the langage descends you through African Francophone, sign language of the French speaking African deaf and not with the words of ASL. This is the sign language for deaf Africans. This expression means something about their identity, not the copy of America, but their own African deaf people's language. So this is our proposition. During the collaborative research with African deaf communities, we started to propose the new language name for their local language, lang descends African Francophone, LSRF. That means Francophone, French speaking African sign language, LSARF, is a generic term for sign languages used in deaf communities in France, speaking Western Central Africa with long signs from ASL and an influence of spoken written French. That means contact sign languages made of UASL and French in Africa. Some deaf communities started to use this name. For example, this is a new sign language dictionary published in Cote d'Ivoire, Ecoutemement descends lang descends. Listen to my hands, sign language dictionary. They started to call their language lang descends d'Afrique Francophone, dialect du Cote d'Ivoire. So lang descends d'Afrique Francophone is a generic term for the contact sign language widely used in Western Central Africa. So they start to identify their language name lang descends d'Afrique Francophone, dialect in Cote d'Ivoire. So I can summarize this situation with this figure. Origin was France. So France was the first country to start deaf school in Paris, in the world. So around two centuries before, a little before the French Revolution, a Catholic mission started a small school for the deaf in Paris, and this was the origin. This was the first school for the deaf in the world. France was the origin. And they developed their sign language in France. That is LSF, lang descends francaise, that is French Sign Language in France. And after around half century, after around half century, a French deaf teacher, a French deaf teacher visited America to start the first school for the deaf in America. His name was Roland Clare, Roland Clare, Roland Clark in English. He was a French deaf teacher and he learned lang descends francaise, French Sign Language, and visited America to start the first school for the deaf in America, and started to teach in their sign language. That means French Sign Language. And later, American deaf communities developed their sign language with using signs from France, with using some elements of spoken and written English, and added local signs in America, and developed their own sign language. That means American Sign Language, ASL. So LSF, French Sign Language is the mother of ASL, the origin of ASL, American Sign Language. And one century later, an African-American deaf pastor visited Africa to start their first school for the deaf in Africa with using American Sign Language. That was the activities of Pastor Andrew Foster. Then ASL started to be diffused on the continent of Africa. On the other hand, during the colonizing era, French colonizers started to introduce spoken and written in French, other colonial language in Africa. Then ASL and French met again in Africa, and created a new contact sign language. That means Langdecin-Dafric-Francophone-LSAF. So the birth of LSF, Langdecin-Dafric-Francophone means the two centuries histories of language diffusion around Atlantic Ocean over three continents, Europe, America, and Africa. We can summarize the situation and background of this contact sign language in this worldwide figure. Okay, so what research activities are conducted today, especially in France, speaking West Africa? And I would like to show some examples of my trials, my projects with African deaf committees. As a research project of Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Tufts Japan, the first dictionary project of LSAF started in 2007, around 10 years ago, and we created the first DVD movie dictionary in 2008 with the collaborations of deaf committees in Yawande, Cameroon. And I created, we created a DVD disc, Electronic Sign Language Dictionary with the collaboration of Cameroonian deaf committee. When I was doing this project, I was a member of an institute in Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. So this is the product of their university. And the second project in Cote d'Ivoire, I started in Abijan as a research project of the grant in aid in Japan, Kakenhi. The second dictionary project started in 2008. And after the interruption, unfortunately there was a civil war in Cote d'Ivoire and we had to stop for several years. But recently I restarted again and it continues today with the collaboration of the deaf committee in Abijan. So I started in 2008, and now continuing editing the electronic dictionary, visual dictionary. I'd like to show some photos to show the situation of collaborations in Abijan. This is the first research training with deaf peoples to promote the collaborative researchers. It is very necessary to share knowledge and skills of research, how to research, how to share the results and how to conduct, how to organize the research team and so on. So I'm signing as a lecturer and they are collaborators, deaf collaborators in Abijan. And we had lots of meetings and started to film their science. So of course the models are deaf people. And also I started to train deaf persons to film or organize the research team. Film or organize these kinds of sessions. So I'm not a chef, I'm not the organizer to do everything. No, I'm something like an advisor or something. So they are doing autonomously. For example, I'm a little busy and I have only two weeks to stay there in Abijan. I have to go back to Japan to do my work in my university. But even during my absence in Abijan, they can continue by themselves without me. It's a very good condition to promote their research activities. So it's also important to share the results and report the situation to the deaf committee in Abijan. So I often have a report meeting to have my presentation to explain the process of our collaborative research to general deaf citizens. So in this kind of situation, I also sign myself. That means I do my presentation not in spoken French, but in their sign language. It's very important to promote good relations with the minority people. Also, I visited the university in Abijan to share the result and ask their support of researchers and professors in the university. And sometimes I visit the ministry to explain the situation. This is something like a social contribution by researchers. Not, I think it's not the obligation for researchers, but it's a good idea to promote these kind of good relations with multiple stakeholders in the field. So now we collected around 350 films with the collaboration of deaf counterparts in Abijan last year, 2017. And now we are now creating the disc. Probably this year or next year we will finish all the project in this city, Abijan. And I would like to add some situations about the international research exchanges of African sign languages with the cases of workshops on sign language research in Wokal. Wokal, probably some of you know this conference. World Congress of African Language. This is a congress held in every three years and in 19 international academic conference. And in 2009, they started to include sign language workshop in the World Congress. And also they included the research on African sign languages in the objectives of the constitution of Wokal. I started to participate in these sign language workshop since 2009, from the beginning. And this is the constitution of this World Congress. They started to include aims and objectives. Linguistic studies on African language, both spoken and signed. And to create awareness of the academic circles and et cetera, general public, recognize the African sign language, both spoken and signed. So Wokal, this academic organization, started to promote every, promote sign language researches. And every time, every congress they organized, they started to include sign language session. So he started in 2009 in Germany and first sign language, African sign language workshop was held in Kermin, Germany. And most of the topics from East and South Africa, but several French speaking African countries, topics from these countries are included. Also, around 14 presenters and 11 presentations have been done in the first one, it was very successful. And second one in Cameroon, where seven presenters by, seven presentations by seven presenters in Cameroon. The second one, the international sign language workshop in Africa, and the situation like this. And third one held in Japan, we hosted the congress and also we hosted the sign language workshop for the first time in Japan. And we had 10 presentations by 11 presenters. So this year probably held in, this year the conference will be held in Rabat, Morocco and fourth sign language, African sign language workshop is expected to be held this year, this summer. So very important thing is this. Many deaf presenters, many deaf researchers started to participate in these kinds of international conferences. For example, in Germany, five presenters out of 14 were deaf in sign language workshop in Cameroon, three out of seven in Kyoto, Japan. Six presenters out of 11 were deaf presenters, deaf researchers. So I think deaf people now started to learn more and more in universities, institutes and so on. So deaf people are not only the models or objects of research, but also researchers themselves. Deaf people are not only the objective objects, but also the subject, the actors, researchers themselves. So it's very important to recognize this situation if we have international linguistic conferences including sign language topics, you probably will accept several deaf researchers as presenters, it's very important for us to promote deaf studies, sign language studies and related researches. So for example, in the conference in Germany, there were sign language interpreters like this. Also, this is the conference in Kyoto. This interpreter is from Kenya and he came from Kenya and served as interpreter in Kyoto. So it's very important to provide sign language interpreting services for the Congress, international Congress, in order to promote sign language research and accept deaf presenters and participants. This is, these are very good examples and good activities. So around one hour, so I'd like to conclude this seminar and I'd like to start to answer four questions I proposed at the beginning of that seminar. And first question, what were the historical backgrounds of the diffusion of ASL in West Africa? There existed the international educational activities by an African American deaf pastor and his colleagues that mean the deaf Africans. They did their work widely in West Africa and it resulted in the wide diffusion of ASL. So second question, what kinds of sign languages are used today in these areas? In English speaking Africa, they developed Ghanaian sign language and Nigerian sign language. In French speaking Africa, a contact sign language derived from ASL and spoken real French is widely used. Some deaf people started to call it LSIF lang desing d'Afrique francophone. So third question, what research activities are conducted today, especially in French speaking West Africa? I showed several projects conducted by myself. Some trials, some projects to edit dictionaries of lang desing d'Afrique francophone have been studied. However, they are not enough at all. And fourth question, what kinds of international research exchanges related to African sign language are conducted today? In 2009, WALKOUT started the serial workshop on sign language research as a part of the world conference in every three years. Deaf researchers started to participate in these workshops. So it's very important to prepare sign language into building service in these kinds of academic events. So final slide, yes, yes. I'm now as future issues, I'm very interested in these kind of situations. There is the diversity of sign languages in French speaking areas of free contents. As I told you, France was the origin and they created French sign language in their country and it introduced to America and created ASL. And also in North America, there is a region, Quebec in Canada with French as their official language and they developed lang desing d'Afrique as Quebec sign language as their own sign language, different from French sign language. And later ASL was imported to Africa and met again with spoken French to create, to invent another sign, new contact sign language, lang desing d'Afrique, Francophone. This is for deaf people in French speaking, West Africa. So in the world, there are wide French speaking zones, France, Quebec, Africa and so on. But sign language are very different. French sign language, Quebec sign language, French speaking, African sign language and so on. So the universality, the common French and the diversity of sign languages among them is very important issue, very important issue, but actually not clarified, not researched yet exactly. That's why now I'm conducting my field work always in Africa, but in the future I'd like to add the perspective to compare or clarify the relations among them. And it's very, I think it's very important, interesting to share this recognition among deaf people, among hearing people, among people in French speaking zones and English speaking zones and other people in the world. So this is my perspective. So let me into this only one book published in Japan. This is an ethnography of deaf people in Africa. So this is a history, a history of Pastor Andrew Foster and his colleagues and teachers, children and so on. And they created a huge language community in Western Central Africa. So this is the first ethnography on African deaf people published first published in Japan. And now I am trying to divide chapters to translate into English or French. Now I'm doing my efforts to introduce these results into in the world in French or English. So sometime you can get some chapters on the web or some academic journals and so on. So my research was conducted mainly by the aid of Japanese granting aid or financial support of my university, ICHI Prefector University. And I'm very happy to work with collaborators in African deaf communities. And I'm very happy to say thank you for organizers in SOAS, this University of London. And I had a very good and collaborative work with U.S.S. in Paris, France. And I'd like to say thank you for everyone who participated to this seminar in this evening. Thank you very much. Do you have any comments or or anyone? Well, yeah, please. Good luck. When you say started your work in Cameroon, this is a country with hundreds of languages. And I wonder before there was any European influence, was there any kind of international or international, international didn't exist in our nations, but were there any native sign languages which were widely diffused throughout that area, of which some elements might be incorporated into it later or incorporate themselves automatically? Thank you very much. Yes, as you mentioned, Cameroon is a multi-language country with around 100 or 200 ethnic languages. And now they adopted two official languages, French and English, because first Germany occupied Cameroon and later it was divided into Anglophone and Francophone and later independent, it became independent. So that's why they have two official languages, French and English and multiple languages not officially recognized by the government. This is the situation of Cameroon. And thank you for your question. It's very difficult to clarify the situation of deaf communities before the arrival of ASL. I didn't mean necessarily to give normal, just ordinary hearing people might have been using sign language amongst themselves. Oh, really? Yes, yes, I mentioned that, but okay, okay. Yes, in daily life they use some simple gestures to show numbers, for example, 10 like this and system numbers or some gestures. But I think they, I also, the daily conversation, sometimes they use the neighbor's language, for example, he use some language and he use the neighbor's language, second or third languages. So I observed some simple gestures beyond their ethnicities, but I have not seen fluent sign language system among hearing people. And I'd like to add something about deaf communities. Before the arrival of ASL, were there any sign language system among deaf communities in Cameroon or other African areas? It may be, maybe there was something, there was something, but during my interviews I always asked before the arrival of ASL, what were the situations of communication among deaf people in these areas? But they only say only small, only simple gestures, for example, like this papa or mama, like this, this is an imitation of figures or something activities. So they always say there were no systematic sign language only some simple gestures used among villagers like this. So yes, I think the development of sign language and the language community in Cameroon is after, after the introduction of ASL. Another situation in Cameroon is some school for the deaf started to introduce second foreign sign language that is LSF, French sign language. So first I introduced ASL and already diffused, but another school started to introduce second foreign sign language and it became a young generation started to learn in French sign language. So in Cameroon, there is a little difficult situation and that means coexistence of ASL and French sign language and this is another recent problem in Cameroon. Thank you. I have a lot on that question. I don't know the situation in Cameroon well, but I know of work in Ghana, which I'm sure you also know by a Dutch colleague because she's from the East. Yes. And she has worked on village signs. Oh yes, yes. But it's a small case study, but she has worked in a community which has a high incidence of deaf people do some genetic backgrounds and they have started developing a sign language, which is different and independent of ASL, but it just used in that community, but I think it's a pretty fully-fledged sign language. So I don't know, but I'm a part of it especially because there's so many deaf people, but it might be the case that similar systems existed in before ASL came in different communities. Yes, thank you very much. I know her work, very good work and the case in the village of Adamorube in Ghana, there's a village with high rate of population or deaf, so they developed their own sign language and used only in this village. This is the case of Adamorube sign language. And Ghanaian sign language used in schools and urban areas. This is the influence of ASL. The majority of deaf people in Ghana use this one, the Ghanaian sign language. And I once visited Adamorube and they continued to use their own sign language in Adamorube village, but their children, their deaf children go to the dormitory schools for the deaf in urban areas. That's why the children started to learn the second sign language that is Ghanaian sign language. So I don't know the future of this minority language, but it may be influenced or changed a little or something. It's very important to continue to observe the situation. So I may, yes, I think it may, there may be some minority sign language groups in rural African areas, I think. But I think Adamorube is a very special case because many deaf habitants live here together to develop a systematic sign language. But other cases, for example, deaf children is alone or only two, three deaf persons live in the same village. Only short communication, simple communication among them. Yes, there is a possibility to develop their own sign language system. But if the population of the group is big, it may be easier and not so big. For example, only one, two deaf children like this, it may be very weak. So, yes, I've heard about the situation of Adamorube. And Northern Nigeria, there is a sign language named Hausa sign language. It is very different from Nigerian sign language linked with ASL. So, of course, it's very important to recognize and clarify that these small groups, minority sign languages, it may become the important key to reconstruct the situation before the arrival of ASL in Africa. Thank you. It's very interesting that I didn't know that French sign language was possibly the base for American sign language, the basis. So there should be some common features. And another question that comes from this, you said that American sign, French sign language went to America, but you didn't say if it was United States or all of America, didn't the French sign language spread through all of America, from Alaska to South America? Yes, thank you for your question. And this French deaf teacher went to the United States of America to start their first school for the deaf in America. Yes, this is the history of the United States. And they developed ASL and introduced Africa. Now the situation of Canada or countries in South America, I'm not a specialist, but I've heard that Canadian people, including people in Quebec, use something, some sign languages similar to ASL. So that's why. So we can say that French sign language was introduced and developed and became an American sign language and it influenced to Canada, Quebec, and also in South American countries. However, I do not know very well about the diffusion from the United States to Canada or Mexico or countries in South America. It is very related to ASL. So the origin of France influenced to North and South American continents by the development of ASL. And one process of the diffusion ASL is to the diffusion to Africa, I understand. So yes, it's very important and interesting question. So America means, now in this seminar, I explain this America means the United States, but it is linked with Canadian people, Quebec people, deaf people in Latin America and so on. I'm curious, you said there's a difference between Ghanaian sign language and Nigerian sign language. And I'm curious in two ways, I think. On the one hand, the distinction between Ghanaian and Nigerian, on the one hand, then Afrophone on the other. Because I think there's a number of people who feel that the term Afrophone is in many ways inappropriate these days as an Anglophone because obviously if you look at the air which we call a Francophone, the vast majority of people actually speak another language than French. So there's Wall of, there's Mandinka, there's 10, there's so many. We have a wide variety of African languages. So by desecrating this evidence by the reference to the European name, it has a slightly neo-colonialing to it. But that might be more in Francophone than Anglophone. So that's one angle. So I'm curious about the Nigerian Ghanaian language that that party avoids the West African English type designation. But I'm also curious on the other hand, so there is, you know, people don't really talk about Ghanaian English and Nigerian English. I mean, it's West African English, there's Nigerian Bidji, which is different. But it seems to me to have like a national sign language, like Ghanaian sign language. It's the first time maybe that there's a real convergence between national boundaries and linguistic boundaries. Because part of the linguistic reality in many African countries is, of course, that the national boundaries don't matter on the linguistic boundaries. So Ghana has like, I don't know, 40, 50 languages. Lots of them are spoken in Nigeria or the Toa word. So you have a much more complex situation. So I'm sort of curious that in these emerging varieties, there seems to be an alignment between linguistic identities and national identities. And whether part of the naming reflects that rather than even linguistic differences between the two varieties. And then going back to the Franco, it's interesting that in that doesn't happen, the reference clearly is to the form of colonial power. Okay, thank you very much. I'd like to show, wait, please. Yes. Yes, this is the activity of Christian mission for the deaf in Africa. And he studied his work in Ghana and Nigeria to English speaking countries. And later he expanded his work in various French speaking African countries. So his activities were actually international, not limited within national boundaries. So they introduced ASL and started to mix with local sign vocabulary and developed in Ghana, Nigeria, and other French speaking African countries. So I don't know when they started to use the name of Ghanaian sign language or Nigerian sign language. But I think Foster himself, he only said they use vocabulary of ASL, not with the name of Ghanaian or Nigerian sign language. So it may be after his death or after he stopped his activities in Ghana or Nigeria. And other French speaking countries, they have, they didn't have the name, proper name to call their sign language. That's why we started to discuss and give a new name for this language. So the differences of the language boundary and national boundary is very, very important. But I think it's very important to notice that these situations, these phenomena occurred only after the independence of African countries. So Ghana became independent and Foster founded the School for the Deaf and Nigeria also after the independence he started and other African French speaking countries in the same way. So after the independence of the nation, the nation state, the educational activities started in the capitals of huge cities with deaf schools and started to accept deaf children from all over the country and trained in their school and they started to organize deaf committee. For example, deaf churches and deaf association and so on. So the creation of national sign language or national sign language communities are very, very new phenomena after the independence of national states in Africa. For example, Ghana and Nigeria, they have their own language with their country name. Example, in Kenya, there's Kenyan sign language, Ugandan sign language, South African sign language, et cetera, Ethiopian sign language. There are, yes, yes. In many in East and Southern African countries, there are many sign languages with their country name, Kenyan sign language, Tanzanian sign language, Ugandan sign language. It occurred, mainly occurred after the independence of these nation states. It may be related to the educational activities after their independence within the nation state. So I'm now clarifying, not clarifying everything in Africa, but the language boundaries and frontiers of nation state and the community identities and language use, language name. It's very important to clarify the relation among them. For example, in Japan, a country name is Japan and spoken language is mainly Japanese and we have Japanese sign language and it's almost the same. But in Africa, it's very different, that situation is very complicated and different. So, yes, carefully we have to continue to clarify that similarity and differences among them, nation state, language boundaries, language name and community identities. So thank you very much for your good advice for my future aspects. Okay, yeah, I feel so I'd like to ask more questions but the time is up, I think. So thank you very much for the talk and the... Thank you, thank you very much. Thank you very much.