Abstract
The beginnings of the use of Czech Sign Language were closely associated with the establishment of the first Institute for the Deaf and Dumb in Prague in 1786. The education in this institute was inspired by the French and especially the Viennese schools and their manual methods.
But then the original Prague method using the sign language was created by Wenzel Frost and Czech Sign Language evolved naturally and more or less independently (we assume mutual interference and contacts between Wien and Prague, which will be illustrated in detail). The Prague method was very influential throughout the Austrian Empire.
Probably the oldest and also the most extensive historical source of Czech signs is the book published in 1834 by the head teacher Johann Mücke. The book contains a dictionary with written descriptions (in German which was the only language of instruction until 1936) of 263 signs, divided into thematic groups: Food and Drink, Clothing and Associated Objects, Household Fittings and Dishes, Writing Requisites and Toys, Miscellaneous frequent subjects Animals, People, Verbs and Colours.
Another interesting source is the book published in 1851 by Hieronymus Anton Jarisch, born in the territory of Bohemia, disciple of Frost, future teacher in Vienna. One part of the book is the first illustrated sign language dictionary with 170 pictures of signs and 230 descriptions of signs, which, at least partly, can be considered as signs of the Czech Sign Language.
The important source of information are also six books and one manuscript from the years 1890-1907, which contain chapters devoted to sign language and describe several then used signs, or rather their motivation. In actual fact, they demonstrate different possibilities of iconic representation of visual reality.
Thanks to the preserved data of the period we can look at current signs from the diachronic perspective, identify their original motivation (and compare it with folk etymology), which has become obscure with the passage of time, and historical change, and trace their origin. We can also analyse the trends in changes of phonological/morphological structures of the signs, but only to certain extent.
In addition, we can examine possible relationship among the sign languages that had been used in deaf education at the end of the 18th and 19th centuries according to preserved source. We will present it on an example of signs for animals - signs of iconic nature, directly motivated by reality (particularly appearance, typical behavior) and signs for colours - signs motivated indirectly by the typical object of the particular colour.