Morphological Reduplication in Zimbabwean Sign Language

Abstract

This study presents an analysis of morphological reduplication in Zimbabwean Sign Language
(ZSL), an officially recognized yet under-documented language. Despite reduplication being a
fundamental morphological process across sign languages for encoding grammatical and semantic
functions, its specific manifestations in ZSL remain unexplored. Utilizing a qualitative methodology,
this study employed digital ethnography and native-speaker intuition to analyze a corpus of
naturalistic ZSL videos sourced from Deaf organizations and institutions. Data was analyzed
through the theoretical lenses of Theta theory and Speech Act theory to elucidate the relationship
between form, meaning and function. The study concludes that reduplication in ZSL is not merely a
repetitive gesture but a core, rule-governed grammatical mechanism whose form is motivated by
semantic structure. These findings make a significant contribution to the linguistic documentation
of ZSL and have profound implications for sign language typology, demonstrating how
understudied languages can reveal unique morphological innovations. Furthermore, this study
provides an essential foundation for applied domains, including ZSL pedagogy, curriculum
development and creation of more accurate linguistic resources for the Deaf community in
Zimbabwe.