Yucatec Maya Sign Language is used in the Yucatán region in Mexico by both hearing and deaf members of a number of traditional Mayan communities with unusually high numbers of deaf inhabitants. It is a natural complex language, which is not related to Mexican Sign Language, but may have similarities with sign languages found in nearby Guatemala.

As the hearing villagers are competent in the sign language, the deaf inhabitants seem to be well integrated in the community - in contrast to the marginalisation of deaf people in the wider community.

The spoken language of the community is Yucatec Maya language.

Further reading

• "Sign language, culture & community in a traditional Yucatec Maya village", published by Robert E. Johnson in Sign Language Studies 73:461-474 (1991).

External links

• SIL overview of YMSL

sign languages | Mayan languages | Indigenous languages of Mesoamerica