Cardinal numerals in village sign languages – Approaching cross-modal typology

Abstract

This paper presents data on cardinal numerals in three sign languages from small-scale communities with hereditary deafness. The unusual features found in these data considerably extend the known range of typological variety across sign languages. Some of these features, such as non-decimal numeral bases, are unattested in sign language research, but familiar from spoken languages, while others, such as subtractive sub-systems, are rare in both sign and speech. We conclude that for a complete typological appraisal of a domain, an approach to cross-modal typology, which includes a typologically diverse range of sign languages in addition to spoken languages, is both instructive and feasible.