Greece
National Sign Language
Elleniké Noematiké Glossa, Ελληνική Νοηματική Γλώσσα, ΕΝΓ
In English: Greek Sign Language, GSL
Language Status:5 (Developing).
Recognized language (2000, Law 2817, Official language of deaf community).
Legal Recognition
"Greek Sign Language has been legally recognised as the official language of the Deaf Community in Greece by Law 2817 in 2000."
"Sign Language Legislation in the European Union", Wheatley, M., A. Pabsch., Edition II. Brussels, EUD, 2012:
Sign language is mentioned in Greece in the Education Law. Section 1(4)a) states that Greek Sign Language is the language of deaf and hard of hearing students. (4)b) requires teachers in Deaf schools to know sign language. Despite this requirement, most teachers do not currently know sign language."
Number of Deaf Sign Language Users
5,000 (EUD website, December 2016)
More info.
From EUD's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/eudeaf/videos/10154783114910846/
"Recognition of Greek Sign Language as Equal to Greek
Yesterday, Thursday, September 7, 2017, the bill of the Ministry of Labor, Social Security and Social Solidarity was passed, entitled: "Public pensions and other insurance regulations, Employee protection, Rights of people with disabilities and other provisions". As the title of the enacted Bill states, this provision incorporates provisions for the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Specifically, Article 65 (2) states: "Greek sign language is recognized as equivalent to the Greek language. The state is taking measures to promote it, and to meet all the communication needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens. "
It is a great victory of the Federation of Deaf Greeks and of the whole community of the deaf and hard of hearing people it represents, as our fundamental demand for recognition of our natural language, meaning, as equal to Greek was finally satisfied! This is the culmination of the chronic and persistent struggles we have given, with the active support of the National Confederation of Disabled People not only in the offices of the respective government but also in the streets that you, our members, always filled with your resounding your presence and your undiminished dynamism.
Of course, this does not mean that we are now complacent. Instead, a new circle of claims now opens so that the official state law does not become a blank letter, but to receive flesh and bone. This means that we will strive to make the whole range of services and goods of the Greek state on the same footing as our listening fellow citizens fully accessible by means of signing, but also providing subtitling, written text, etc.
Yesterday is a milestone for the history of our community! We have achieved a great victory! The fight continues and we want you, as always, next to us!"