Mobile BSL Dictionary

Since starting my BSL course last year (final exam on Monday!) I’ve been struck by the potential for mobile technologies to assist translation and memory for BSL students on the move. As a result, I was really excited to discover Mobilesign, an online dictionary developed by the University of Bristol’s Centre for Deaf Studies (and discovered via a hunch based upon yesterday’s edition of the BBC’s See Hear).  From what I can glean, Mobilesign has been developed in conjunction with SignStation, a website promoting Deaf awareness and workplace materials.

Mobilesign contains over 5000 BSL signs, available through a minimal, mobile friendly interface. Suitable for phones, PDAs and any other networked mobile tech, signs can be searched for by string (any search term, or set of terms) or through the A-Z index.  Through sister site SignStation you can explore by category or via a picture dictionary when you register. Registration is free.

Bristol cite an underlying bespoke content management system allowing
access to indexes of the most requested signs, related signs and regional variations.  This rewards exploration, and complements other materials from CACDAP and the great resources developed by the University of Wolverhampton that I’ve linked to previously.  To see all my articles linking to BSL resources, pop ‘BSL’ in the search box, or use the BSL category listed on the left.