Base joint configuration in Sign Language of the Netherlands : phonetic variation and phonological specification 1

Early phonological analyses of sign languages proposed that a sign consists of feature values for four parameters: handshape, orientation of the hand in space (e.g. palm up, fingers away from the body), place of articulation (or location), and movement (features such as shape, repeated, and alternating). This paper deals with what has traditionally been called handshape (Stokoe 1978). In refering to different handshapes, we will be using the terms “base joint(s)” and “non-base joint(s)”. These are illustrated in (1).