Non-manual markings in the Brazilian Sign Language used in Maceió: outlines of a community of practice

ABSTRACT This study aimed to describe the variation in the phonological parameter of non-manual markings of the Brazilian Sign Language and the membership of a community of practice based on the assumptions of Variance Sociolinguistics and the third wave of sociolinguistics. The corpus was constituted by the recording of the execution of the signal ‘dog’ performed by 16 deaf subjects, of both sexes. The results point to the existence of variation in the parameter analyzed and the use of specific postures that may be associated to the community of practice of teachers (in training or graduates).