Princess Diana in sign language

Did you know that Princess Diana learned BSL (British Sign Language) and was a patron of British Deaf Association (BDA) in the 1980s.

Name sign for Princess Diana

Name sign for Diana (1961-1997), Princess of Wales; the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales.

This name sign was given in a region. But, her real name sign that, she herself signed, is shown as:

Pronunciation (sign description): Dominant forefinger circles around the top of the head, then "clawed-W" moves downward with its palm facing outward.

Related signs: ENGLAND, QUEEN, PRINCE.

Deaf History

Princess Diana of Wales is lovingly remembered for her learning British Sign Language (BSL) and presenting it in public. Her signing was natural and beautiful that reflects her beauty.

Diana joined British Deaf Association (BDA) to become its patron and learned BSL in 1983. She signed BSL to 800 delegates at a BDA conference in Brighton, East Sussex, in 1990. She also often visited deaf schools.

Diana has been an inspiration to Deaf community worldwide for her compassion, kindness, and charity work. She was not alone. Past royal members have been known to learn and communicate in sign language and/or fingerspelling. For example, Queen Victoria communicated in sign language and fingerspelling with Princess Alice of Battenberg who was deaf).

The video clips above show one of the BSL teachers and mentors who share his experience working with Diana.

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