The first generation consists of a deaf woman born in 1972, her deaf younger sister born in 1984, and a deaf friend of intermediate age. The second generation started in 1996 with the older woman's first child, who was deaf, and the rest of her and the other two women's children, all native signers, along with some additional cousins and friends.[1]
^a Sign-language names reflect the region of origin. Natural sign languages are not related to the spoken language used in the same region. For example, French Sign Language originated in France, but is not related to French. Conversely, ASL and BSL both originated in English-speaking countries but are not related to each other; ASL however is related to French Sign Language.
^b Denotes the number (if known) of languages within the family. No further information is given on these languages.