Abstract This article examines ideologies underlying the rating of sign language vitality. The discussion is based on a 2011 survey by UNESCO and the International Institute for Sign Languages and Deaf Studies, and a newer survey by UNESCO, released in 2018. Ideologies of biodiversity and culture that appear in discourse about language vitality generally are examined. Three of the factors used to determine the vitality scores of 15 sign languages during the first survey (Safar and Webster, 2014; Webster and Safar, 2019) are considered from an ideological perspective. Further ideological issues that surfaced during this survey are then explored through a case study on endangered village sign languages in Mexico. Lastly, some ideological aspects of UNESCO's 2018 survey are scrutinised, including its accessibility to deaf signers, emphasis on hierarchical globalist structures, and presentation of sign languages as bounded entities that fit into binary categories. We find problems with framing sign languages within endangerment ideologies and relying on academic perceptions of ‘language’ that differ from the beliefs of language communities themselves. These vitality surveys provide a starting point for more robust mixed-methods assessments, which should take more account of sign language communities' own perspectives.

中文翻译：

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手语活力评估因素评分背后的意识形态

摘要 本文探讨了手语活力评级的意识形态。讨论基于联合国教科文组织和国际手语和聋人研究所 2011 年的一项调查，以及联合国教科文组织于 2018 年发布的一项最新调查。普遍审查了出现在有关语言活力的话语中的生物多样性和文化意识形态。在第一次调查（Safar 和 Webster，2014 年；Webster 和 Safar，2019 年）中，从意识形态的角度考虑了用于确定 15 种手语活力得分的三个因素。然后通过对墨西哥濒危村庄手语的案例研究，探讨了本次调查中出现的进一步意识形态问题。最后，对教科文组织 2018 年调查的一些意识形态方面进行了审查，包括其对聋哑手语者的可及性、强调分层的全球主义结构，并将手语呈现为适合二元类别的有界实体。我们发现在濒危意识形态中构建手语以及依赖于与语言社区本身信仰不同的“语言”的学术观念存在问题。这些活力调查为更强大的混合方法评估提供了一个起点，应该更多地考虑手语社区自己的观点。