How to Sign Human and Person

The short answer

This guide covers American Sign Language (ASL), the sign language most widely used in the US. Other sign languages, such as British Sign Language, have their own signs for these words. If you are learning a different sign language, check its signs separately.

In ASL, PERSON is usually signed with both hands in a P handshape. Hold them in front of your chest and move them straight down together. HUMAN is often signed the same way but with an H handshape instead of a P. Signers vary more on HUMAN than on PERSON, and some fingerspell it or use PERSON instead.

A related form is easy to confuse with PERSON. ASL also has a person marker that is added after a verb to name someone who does that activity, as in teacher or worker. This marker uses flat hands rather than P handshapes. Which form you need depends on whether you mean "a person" or "someone who does something."

How to sign PERSON

• Form a P handshape on each hand. Extend your index finger and middle finger, and touch your thumb to the middle of the middle finger. Then tilt the hand so the fingers point forward and slightly down. It is the same shape as the fingerspelled letter P.
• Hold both hands in front of your upper chest, about shoulder-width apart. Your palms should face down or slightly toward each other.
• Move both hands straight down together, in parallel, to about waist level.
• Keep the movement smooth and the handshapes steady all the way down.

How to sign HUMAN

• Form an H handshape on each hand. Extend your index and middle fingers together, side by side, with the other fingers folded and the thumb tucked. It is the same shape as the fingerspelled letter H.
• Place both hands near your upper chest.
• Move them down the front of your torso, following the same path as PERSON. Some signers keep the hands close to the body or brush the fingertips lightly down the chest.

No source was supplied for this guide that confirms one standard form of HUMAN, and regional and personal variation is common. Confirm the version used where you live by checking a video-based ASL dictionary or asking a Deaf signer or ASL instructor. If you are unsure, fingerspelling H-U-M-A-N will be understood.

The person marker (as in teacher or worker)

• Sign the verb first, for example TEACH or WORK.
• Open both hands flat with the fingers together, and turn the palms to face each other.
• Start at chest level and move both hands down along the sides of your body to about the waist.

Some common occupations have their own signs, and some learners overuse the marker. If you are building a word this way, check that the combined form is the one signers actually use.

Comparing the three forms

Form | Handshape | Movement | When it is used

PERSON | P on both hands | Both hands move straight down in front of the chest | The word person on its own

HUMAN | H on both hands | Both hands move down the front of the torso | The word human; varies by signer

Person marker | Flat open hands, palms facing each other | Both hands move down the sides of the body | After a verb, to mean someone who does it

How to check your signing

• Practice in front of a mirror. Your fingers should clearly form a P or an H, not a K, a V, or a loose shape.
• Check that both hands move together and stay parallel, rather than one leading the other.
• Compare your version with a video demonstration. Watch the handshape, starting position, and path of movement.

A mirror check shows whether you are making the shapes and movements described here. It does not show whether a fluent signer would read the sign naturally, or whether your community prefers a different variant. Only feedback from a fluent signer can tell you that.