Page Type: languageMexican Sign Language | Ethnologue

MFS ISO 639-3

Mexican Sign Language

A language of Mexico

ISO 639
mfs
Alternate Names
LSM, Lengua de Señas Mexicana, Lenguaje Manual Mexicana, Lenguaje de Señas Mexicano, Lenguaje de Señas de México, Lenguaje de Signos Mexicano, Lenguaje de las Manos
Population
130,000 (2010 DBS/DOOR/SIL). Estimated, assuming 0.1% of total population. Earlier estimate: 87,000–100,000 mainly monolingual users (1986 T. Smith-Stark).
Location:
Scattered, except in Yucatan Peninsula (see Yucatec Mayan Sign Language [msd]) and other rural areas.
Language Status
5 (Developing). Recognized language (2011, Ley general para la inclusión de las personas con discapacidad (General law for the inclusion of disabled people), especially Article XXII).
Classification
Sign language, Deaf community sign language
Dialects
Influence from Old French Sign Language [fsl] starting in 1867. Monterrey and Torreón both use a subdialect of LSM with a lot of different and newly invented signs. Mazatlan reportedly has more ASL [ase] influence. Both ASL and LSM are used in parts of Baja California Norte, especially in Tijuana and Ensenada. Users of ASL have 14% intelligibility of LSM. Lexical similarity 85%–100% among regional dialects, nearly all above 90% (Bickford 1991).
Language Use
Used by all. Some also use Spanish [spa].
Language Development
Dictionary. Bible portions: 2013.
Other Comments
Most deaf schools use oralist method, but some use signs. 15 deaf churches or agencies for the deaf in the Mexico City area, 4 in Guadalajara, 3 in Mérida, 3 in Puebla, 3 in Cuernavaca, 2 in Los Mochis, 2 in Monterrey, 2 in Tijuana, 2 in Ciudad Juárez, 2 in Torreón, 2 in Aguascalientes, at least one each in Jojutla, Cd. Madero, Cd. Mante, Reynosa, Ensenada, Torreón, Colima, Morelia, Pachuca, Tampico, Toluca, Queretaro, Tlaxcala, San Luis Potosi, Celaya, Hermosillo, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Acanceh, Zaplotanejo. 19 schools for the deaf in Saltillo, Guadalajara (3), Mexico City (6), Morelia, Cuernavaca, Monterrey, Ciudad Obregón, Hermosillo, Villahermosa, Matamoros, Veracruz; athletic clubs, theatre troupes, craft schools, rehabilitation institutions.

Also Spoken in

Map

Location: Scattered, except in Yucatan Peninsula (see Yucatec Mayan Sign Language [msd]) and other rural areas.