Content Warning: This section of the guide includes ableist language and references to anti-d/Deaf bias.

The term “deaf” refers broadly to any people with hearing loss, either from birth or acquired later in life. The term “hard of hearing” is often used to describe people with mild or moderate hearing loss. The term “Deaf” is used to refer to people who participate in Deaf culture, which usually means that they speak ASL as a first or second language. In some cases, “d/Deaf” is used to encompass the overlap between deaf and Deaf individuals. The Deaf community in North America (as in other parts of the world) has its own cultural norms, values, and history.

American Sign Language, or ASL, is the most commonly spoken sign language in the US and Canada. It is also used in some other parts of the world, including some parts of West Africa, Asia, and South America. ASL was originally developed in the early 1800s at the American School for the Deaf. It developed naturally out of Old French Sign Language and some students’ personal or village sign languages. Like all sign languages, ASL is produced using hand shapes, body posture, and facial expressions. It is a crucial element of Deaf culture.