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Reference.org
Varieties of American Sign Language
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<p><a href="/facts/American_Sign_Language/MGTCXaGb">American Sign Language</a> (ASL) developed in the United States, starting as a blend of local sign languages and <a href="/facts/French_Sign_Language/Ffcp4RNX">French Sign Language</a> (FSL). Local varieties have developed in many countries, but there is little research on which should be considered dialects of ASL (such as Bolivian Sign Language) and which have diverged to the point of being distinct languages (such as Malaysian Sign Language). </p><p>The following are sign language varieties of ASL in countries other than the US and Canada, languages based on ASL with <a href="/facts/Substrata_(linguistics)/L73fjNSr">substratum</a> influence from local sign languages, and <a href="/facts/Mixed_language/SD2hEYD8">mixed languages</a> in which ASL is a component. Distinction follow political boundaries, which may not correspond to linguistic boundaries. </p>