Why does the phonological structure in sign language permit greater morphological complexity than spoken languages?

💡 Explanation

Sign language phonology allows simultaneous articulation of multiple parameters (handshape, location, movement), therefore, simultaneity facilitates parallel morphemes because information can be conveyed at once, rather than strictly sequentially like in spoken language; rather than iconicity limiting affixation.

• Why does translation of legal contracts require specialized pragmatic analysis beyond simple dictionary lookups?
• An internet forum uses automated moderation to detect and filter offensive language. Which process is responsible for inaccurate flagging of benign phrases?
• Why does epenthesis (vowel insertion) occur in certain consonant clusters during second language acquisition?
• In Tokyo Japanese, pitch accent changes during sentence production affect prosodic phrasing. Which mechanism explains why a high-high pitch sequence at a phrase boundary becomes a rising contour?
• Why does metaphor comprehension in patients with prefrontal cortex damage degrade, particularly when understanding abstract concepts?
• Why does a human interpreter struggle to accurately convey sarcasm from a speaker using low acoustic variability in their intonation during a remote video call?