A Grammar of Sign Language of the Netherlands (NGT)

Besides specifications concerning which fingers are selected (see PHONOLOGY 1.1.1.1), the active articulator needs a specification regarding the configuration of these fingers. The specifications that are relevant for NGT are described in terms of flexion of the finger joints, spreading of the fingers and aperture in relation to the thumb. This section describes the possible options within these three categories; one option needs to be selected for every handshape. Crucially, the selected option always applies to all selected fingers.

 

As for flexion, NGT distinguishes between extended and curved selected fingers. A curved configuration means that the selected fingers are flexed at all joints, and is indicated in Tables 2.2-2.6 by the feature [curve]. The following minimal pair complaint vs. daddy visualizes this difference:

 

 

Figure 2.7. The minimal pair complaint (a)and daddy (b), differing only in the flexion of the selected index-finger: the former is curved while the latter is extended (Crasborn et al. 2020, symbols added).

 

As for spreading of the selected fingers, three options are mentioned in the literature:

                 (i)            Spread;

               (ii)            Adjoined;

             (iii)            Crossed.

 

Van der Kooij proposes that spread and adjoined are the only values that are phonologically distinctive in NGT, and that the [crossed] value is only relevant in exceptions, namely, initialized signs with a X-handshape. Since this handshape is exceptional, as it is merely used in initialized signs, one could debate about its status in the phonology of NGT (see also PHONOLOGY 1.1.3), and therefore, this feature also does not occur in Tables 2.2-2.6. Adjoined is the default, and spread is indicated by the feature [wide] in Tables 2.2-2.6. The three options are displayed in Figure 2.8, with handshapes in which the index and middle finger are selected:

 

Figure 2.8. The three phonetic options for the feature ‘spreading’, of which the first two are considered relevant for the phonology of NGT, while the third occurs only exceptionally.

 

 

Lastly, aperture concerns the position of the fingers in relation to the thumb. There are two options:

                 (i)            Open (i.e., the fingers do not touch the thumb);

               (ii)            Closed (i.e., the fingers contact the thumb).

These are indicated by the features [open] and [closed] in Tables 2.2-2.6. Both options are shown in Figure 2.9, with handshapes in which the middle finger is selected:

 

 

Figure 2.9. The two options for the feature ‘aperture’.