Lorma alphabet

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Lorme’s Alphabet

This is a tactile method that assigns specific points, shapes, and gestures on the hand to letters of the Latin alphabet. It is a simple method, usually quick to learn, but has a fairly limited transmission speed due to the large number of different characters. A big advantage is that all that is needed for communication is the hand of the person receiving the message and the fingers of the person sending the message. Letters are conveyed by pressing points on the hand or performing a line/sequence of several movements.

The alphabet was developed by Hieronim Lorme, a deafblind man who lost his hearing at the age of 15 and partially lost his sight at the age of 25. He developed the method primarily for his own communication needs, as he was a poet and journalist. After his death, the alphabet was popularized by his daughter. Today, it is one of the most widely taught and used tactile alphabets in Europe.

DESCRIPTION OF LETTERS ON THE HAND, TOGETHER WITH MESSAGES

VOWELS

A, E, I, O, U:

the letters are arranged in alphabetical order, each letter corresponds to one point on the pad of a specific finger:

A: thumb,
E: index finger,
I: middle finger,
O: ring finger,
U: little finger,
Y: horizontal line crossing the fingers in the middle, starting from the index finger to the little finger.

CONSONANTS

T, B, D, G, H:

lines are drawn along the fingers – from the fingertips down to the base of the fingers:

T: along the thumb,
B: along the index finger,
D: along the middle finger,
G: along the ring finger,
H: along the little finger,
F: squeeze two fingers together at the same time – the index and middle fingers, near the fingertips,
L: a long line drawn from the tip of the middle finger across the entire palm,
P: a line from the base of the thumb along the edge of the index finger,
J: a single squeeze of the tip of the middle finger,
S: draw a small circle on the inside of the palm,
K: touch the inside of the palm with the tips of four fingers simultaneously,
C: one point at the base of the palm,
Z: a diagonal line from the base of the thumb to the base of the little finger,
R: tap the inside of the palm with your fingers, not all at once, but quickly moving from the little finger to the index finger,
V: one point at the base of the thumb,
W: two points at the base of the thumb,
M: one point under the little finger,
N: one point under the index finger,
X: a horizontal line below the base of the palm,
Q: a long line along the outer edge of the palm, from the base of the palm towards the tip of the little finger.

POLISH LETTERS

Ą, Ć, Ę, Ł, Ń, Ó, Ś, Ź, Ż:

associated with their counterparts without softening tails:

Ą: a small vertical line (like a comma) in place of A,
Ę: a small vertical line in place of E,
Ć: a small vertical line in place of C,
Ł: a long line drawn from the base of the hand to the tip of the middle finger,
Ń: a small vertical line in place of N,
Ó: a small vertical line in place of O,
Ś: a circle like S + a small vertical line in the centre of the palm,
Ź: a slanted line like Z + a small vertical line in the centre of the palm,
Ż: a slanted line like Z + a dot in the centre of the palm.

DOUBLE SIGNS

CH: two diagonal lines intersecting in the middle of the palm,
SZ: squeezing all fingers except the thumb at the same time,
CZ: placing two dots at the same time at the base of the hand, at point C,
RZ: pulling all fingers from the base of the fingers to the base of the hand,
DZ: a combination of D and Z, but without lifting the hand, similar to the capital letter L.

MESSAGES

confirmation: several quick touches with a clenched fist,
denial: rubbing several times with the inside of an open palm,
erasing a mistake: as for denial (do not repeat a single letter, but the whole word),
end of a word: tap with an open hand,
question: touch with the outer edge of the hand, then rotate along its axis and touch with the outer side of the hand,
misunderstanding of a word: close the hand into a fist.

Deafblind Wielkopolska,

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