coke
The sign for "Coke"
as in "Coca-Cola"
looks as if you are
jabbing a needle
into your arm.
It is done
by using your
dominant hand
index finger
to poke
your non-dominant
arm's bicep.
It's true folks.
I'm not making this up!
And I'm not talking about "cocaine."
I'm talking about the drink.
Why this is the case
is debated somewhat
in the Deaf world.
Many people think
it is because of the idea
of "shooting up" with Cocaine.
I've been told however
by more than one old Deaf codger
that the sign originally
had to do with the idea
that in the old days
when Deaf kids
would have to go
to the doctor
to get a "shot"
they would afterward
be rewarded
with a bottle of Coke.
P.S. The sign "cocaine"
is totally different.
It is an "A" hand
(fist with your
thumb folded
down on top
like in a thumb war)
brought to the nose
with a very small
double movement.
In a response message dated
4/17/2008
posted on Lifeprint.com,
Joanne_Wiggins writes
to Dr. Bill Vicars:
I've been enjoying
your excellent website
& came across the sign for "coke"
& your speculations as to its origin.
Here's my 2 cents:
According to my Dad--Georgia born & raised
(Georgia being the home of said beverage)
--when he was growing up in the 30's & 40's,
the slang term for a "coke"
was "dope"
--as in,
"Give me a dope".
(Presumably this was a reference
to the cocaine
that was apparently
part of the original formula.)
Maybe that "hearing"
slang term
found its way
into sign language as well.
ice cream
To sign "ice-cream"
hold an "S" handshape
(fist with your thumb
folded in front
between your middle
and ring fingers)
in front of your mouth
and move it downward twice
like you would lick
an ice-cream cone.
-- Bobby Vanecko is from Chicago, Illinois.