American manual alphabet

When signed with the left hand, the motions are in mirror image, therefore unreversed for the viewer.

However, they are signed with the hand in an ergonomically neutral position, palm facing to the side and fingers pointing forward.

When used within fingerspelled English words, letters of the manual alphabet may be oriented differently than if they were to stand alone.

Fingerspelling is typically only used in a specific set of circumstances, primarily for proper names (including personal, brand, and place names) and other words that do not have a conventional sign, usually borrowed words from English or other languages.

Older generations of deaf individuals still insist that the "E" handshape requires that the thumb make contact with the tips of the index and middle fingers.

Meanwhile, younger generations are beginning to produce a handshape that separates the thumb from the other fingers on the lower end of the palm.

As a result, fingerspelling has had a profound impact on the literacy of deaf and hard of hearing children.

This conclusion is widely accepted, but the debate lies in which methods of teaching best utilize this relationship.

For example, if the signer was trying to sign that they were mad, they would use facial expressions and body language to really determine how they were feeling.