To sign Virginia, simply fingerspell the letters 'V' and 'A'. Start by forming a 'V' handshape with your dominant hand, holding your index and middle fingers up and apart with your palm facing forward. Then, smoothly transition into an 'A' handshape by closing your fingers into a fist with your thumb resting against the side of your index finger, moving your hand slightly outward to the side as you do so.
Point to yourself for 'I', sign 'grow up', and then sign 'Virginia' by smoothly spelling V-A.
Sign 'tomorrow', 'we', 'drive', and finish with the V-A sign for 'Virginia'.
Start with the V-A sign for 'Virginia', then sign 'state', and finally 'beautiful'.
Point to yourself for 'I', sign 'grow up', and then sign 'Virginia' by smoothly spelling V-A.
Sign 'tomorrow', 'we', 'drive', and finish with the V-A sign for 'Virginia'.
Start with the V-A sign for 'Virginia', then sign 'state', and finally 'beautiful'.
Many states in ASL are signed using their postal abbreviations. Because spelling out the entire word would be time-consuming, using the quick V-A abbreviation is the standard and most efficient way to refer to the state.
No, you should avoid bouncing your hand. The movement from the 'V' to the 'A' should be a smooth, slight horizontal shift to the side, keeping your hand relatively level.
While you technically can fingerspell V-I-R-G-I-N-I-A, it is rarely done in everyday conversation. Using the V-A abbreviation is much more common, natural, and widely understood by fluent ASL signers.
