@TheEdVerse A quick question for you regarding languages in the forgotten realms. Do any of the major trade cities have a sort of sign language like an ASL style thing for maybe deaf travelers or merchants of the sort?
— Richard Johnson (@DjPhalcona) September 22, 2021
1)
Docks, mills, forges, and other noisy workplaces long ago devised a SIMPLE “hand-code” for moving around and handling cargo, that, over time, caravan and seafaring merchants took all over the Realms.
Despite the name, it’s a… 2)
…system of arm gestures (the subtle hand gestures are more for tallying and negotiating, and segue into covert hand-signals used in ruling courts, etc.) for “Approach” and “Get back!” and “Danger!” and “Over There!” and…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) September 23, 2021
3)
…“Go/It’s that way” and “Go/It’s FAR that way” and “Set it down just THERE” and the like. Kenku use it all the time, as do half-orcs and others who don’t want to stumble over spoken language they’re not comfortable in, or… 4)
…speak in an accent they know won’t go over well. Gnomes and halflings often use it alongside speech, in everyday situations, to either carry on two conversations at once, or to speak to one party (say, a fellow gnome or…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) September 23, 2021