ASL Idiom Question

Pythias

Pythias

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Yesterday I saw Keith Wann perform (hilarious), and he made reference to an idiom that I am unfamiliar with. It was a situation where one guy saw another and asked if he was deaf. The second man was and asked how the first guy could tell. He said something like "You look deaf strong."

Could someone explain this one to me? Thanks for your time!
 
Deaf, with a capital D (actual Deaf folks or ASL signers, please correct me if I'm wrong!)
 
Thanks Arthaey :) He signed "Deaf"/"deaf", so I don't know if it was capitalized or not :-P

The first man could tell the second man was D/deaf because he "looked D/deaf strong."

What I'm looking for is better understanding of this idiom.
 
You know how you can sometimes just tell that a stranger walking down the street is a tourist? Even if they're dressed like you, they might have subtly different, "out of place" behaviors that give them away. Maybe you can't even put your finger on why you're so sure they're not from around here, but you get that sense.

I'd imagine that culturally Deaf folks, being their own cultural group, can also see little "give-aways" for someone else being culturally Deaf or not.

And I'm sure there are obvious things, too. It doesn't have to be only subtle things. ;)
 
Once again, this. You're on a roll Arthaey!

Arthaey said:
You know how you can sometimes just tell that a stranger walking down the street is a tourist? Even if they're dressed like you, they might have subtly different, "out of place" behaviors that give them away. Maybe you can't even put your finger on why you're so sure they're not from around here, but you get that sense.

I'd imagine that culturally Deaf folks, being their own cultural group, can also see little "give-aways" for someone else being culturally Deaf or not.

And I'm sure there are obvious things, too. It doesn't have to be only subtle things. ;)
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Hehe, thanks, warpedpink. :ty:

What I would like to know, is what are the "give-aways", subtle or not, that let you know someone is culturally Deaf (or not)? (Besides the super-obvious "signs ASL" or "speaks English" ;)).
 
Arthaey said:
Hehe, thanks, warpedpink. :ty:

What I would like to know, is what are the "give-aways", subtle or not, that let you know someone is culturally Deaf (or not)? (Besides the super-obvious "signs ASL" or "speaks English" ;)).
Click to expand...

Hehehe ^ This is what I meant by my original question. :-P I look forward to answers!

Aaaaand, the illustrious Mr. Wann posted a link to this on his facebook and a commenter hinted at something: It would have been "strong Deaf" not "Deaf strong" :-P
Either way, though, I still don't know what makes someone look Deaf :)
 
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Strong Deaf is an English translation of that idiom. Really it could be DEAF STRONG, which to me like Arthaey said, means they are Super ASL and proud of their culture.

STRONG can also be used to say someone looks like something; like if someone looks just like his dad, you can say HIS DAD LOOK STRONG to mean he looks like the spittin image of his daddy.

I would say STRONG DEAF giveaways are pride about Deaf culture and prefering ASL, even strong ASL with no hints of English, as method of communication. And possibly prefering the company of other Deaf over hearing.
 
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