Deaf cultures and Sign Languages of the world: Sri Lanka (Sri Lanka's indigenous name)

Created 10 April 2000, links updated monthly with the help of LinkAlarm.

Sri Lankan flag David Bar-TzurSri Lankan flag

map of Sri Lanka

Flag: World flag database.
Map: Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection.

For a quick, interesting resource for facts about this and other countries,
try Mystic Planet - The New Age directory of Planet Earth.

Note: A flag next to a link shows what language the website is in. If it is followed by this icon: (video camera: This links to a video), it is a video in that spoken language. A flag followed by Sign Language iconmeans it is in the sign language of that country. globe (international icon)Sign Language iconmeans there is International Gesture.

Deaf and social services Deafblind Deaf culture Deaf education & youth Deaf history and current events
Deaf oppression & liberation Deaf painting and sculpture Deaf sports & recreation Organizations Sri Lankan Sign Language
Sri Lankan Sign Language dictionaries

Deaf and social services

stained glass ballFound In Ceylon | Volunteering In Sri Lanka. Found In Ceylon Experiences is proud to offer a volunteer program for adults interested in contributing to the growth and development of Rohana Special School in Matara, Sri Lanka. As a volunteer, you’ll have the opportunity to work with deaf children, children with disabilities, teachers, school staff, administration, foreigners, and local merchants and friends to improve the education and social environment at Rohana. At the same time, you’ll have the opportunity to explore one of the planet’s most beautiful countries, a teardrop-shaped jewel shining in the Indian Ocean. For more information, please visit Rohanna Special School..

Deafblind

Deaf culture

International bibliography of Sign Language - Sri Lanka.

World Deaf directory - Sri Lanka.

Deaf education & youth

stained glass ballAnuradhapura Deaf and Blind School.

DeafTODAY. (2005, March 1). Sri Lanka: Caring for children growing up alone after the tsunami. Fourteen-year-old Suba couldn't hear the thundering roar of the giant waves that claimed her mother on that fatal December Sunday - she is unable to hear or speak since birth. However, Suba saw the killer waves and felt their power. Fortunately, she managed to escape from the disaster.

stained glass ballGunatilleke, N. (2003, August 7). Rainbow project donates vocational training centre. The Rainbow Project of Japan recently donated a vocational training centre for the Deaf and Blind School, Kumbukkana in the Monaragala district. About 75 deaf and blind students study in this school.

intrinsicchaos. "Deaf Can!" So Says Rohana Special School!

Mendis, P. (2004, October 19). Focus on Policy Development, Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has paid particular attention to the education of children who have disability. The first School for the Deaf and Blind was started in 1912! In the early 1970s the Ministry of Education started increasing educational opportunities for children who have disability through integration. Since the adoption of the Salamanca Statement, however, the emphasis in Sri Lanka has been on inclusive education.

Reijntjes School for the deaf. The Dr. Reijntjes School for the Deaf in Moratuwa, Sri Lanka, started in 1984 with 8 deaf pupils under the care of Mrs. Tineke de Silva from the Netherlands. After 3 months there were 16 deaf children. The School was growing so fast that new buildings were constructed with the help of Dutch Organizations. All the deaf pupils also needed boarding facilities, as they live far away from Moratuwa. After 10 years the number of deaf children was growing to 100.

stained glass ballRohanna Special School. A place of education and living for children who are deaf, blind, or have learning challenges, Rohana Special School is located in Matara, Sri Lanka.

Sarvodaya >> Students in Class. Children at the Sawan Sahana Deaf School taking drawing lessons.

Sri Lankan initiatives. Scroll down to "School for the deaf."

Stichting Theo de Wit Lanka Education Fund. De stichting is opgericht ter nagedachtenis aan Theo de Wit, vroeger werkzaam op het Ministerie van Financiën in Den Haag. Graag ging hij op vakantie naar Sri Lanka, waar hij in 1981 in contact kwam met de Anuradhapura Deaf and Blind School. Theo raakte geboeid door het wel en wee van de school. Vooral de manier waarop men met zeer minimale middelen de dove of blinde kinderen probeerde voor te bereiden op een redelijk zelfstandige plaats in de maatschappij.

Deaf history and current events

Sign, gesture, & deafness in South Asian & South-West Asian histories: A bibliography with annotation and excerpts from India; also from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma / Myanmar, Iraq, Nepal, Pakistan, Persia / Iran, & Sri Lanka.

Deaf oppression & liberation

DeafTODAY.

golden marble bullet(2004, December 23). Deaf persons to get licences? The Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Social Welfare are discussing with the authorities the possibility of issuing driving licences to deaf persons.

golden marble bullet(2004, December 23). Drivers' licenses for the deaf? The deaf will be issued with driving licenses if the present discussions the Women's Empowerment and Social Welfare Ministry holding with the relevant authorities succeed.

Deaf painting and sculpture

Sarvodaya Sawan Sahana Sewa. eaf children can’t hear, but they are very visual and see the things sharper then anybody else. We see in our Art Classes that our pupils observe the world very intensive. Every detail we find back in their drawings. Most of our deaf children like to express themselves in art. We do drawing, painting, claying and all other forms of art. At the end of the school year we organize an Art Exhibition with their work.

Deaf sports & recreation

Sarvodaya Sawan Sahana Sewa - Sports education.

stained glass ballSunday Observer. (2005, October 16). Ratmalana 'A' champs again in Deaf Schools Softball Cricket Sixes.

Organizations

stained glass ballSri Lanka Central Federation of the Deaf. Our mission is to assist the deaf community in Sri Lanka to lead a free and independent life by preventing social, economic and cultural oppression, by developing skills and abilities to overcome weaknesses and by winning equal rights.

Sri Lankan Sign Language

International bibliography of sign language Sri Lankan Sign Language (SQS).

ntrinsicchaos.Sri Lankan flagSign Language icon

golden marble bulletCricket Day. The boys at Rohana Special School in Matara, Sri Lanka, host a cricket tournament.

golden marble bulletMangosteens are discovered at Rohana Special School in Matara, Sri Lanka.

South Asian linguistics - Sign languages (All dialects).

Sri Lankan Sign Language: A language of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan Sign Language dictionaries

stained glass ballSri Lankan Sign Language dictionary.Sri Lankan flagSign Language iconAn one-year concerted effort has resulted in the publication of An Introduction to Sri Lankan Sign Language, Sri Lanka’s first-ever conversational sign language dictionary. Volunteers from all over the globe and school staff worked together for many months to choose more than 350 signs, create drawings for each sign, translate all content into Sinhala and English, and assemble materials in a 120-page softcover book published locally. Copies have been distributed to the school staff and families of school pupils. With a clear, concise, and easy-to-use dictionary, we hope to foster the growth of sign language literacy in Matara and across Sri Lanka.

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