To celebrate the 60th birthday of Siegmund Prillwitz, founder of theInstitute for German Sign Language at Hamburg University, and to honour his thirty years of commitment in the field of sign language research, sixteen renowned researchers and research teams from all over the world have published a Festschrift titled "Fortschritte in der Gebärdensprachforschung - Festschrift für Siegmund Prillwitz /Progress in Sign Language Research - In Honor of Siegmund Prillwitz".The list of contributors is ample evidence of Siegmund Prillwitz' high standing in the international research community:Harlan Lane, Carol Padden, Sherman Wilcox, Philip M. Prinz, Dan I.Slobin and Ronnie Wilbur from the USA, Adam Schembri from Australia,Bencie Woll and Jim Kyle from England, Nini Hoiting from theNetherlands, Penny Boyes-Braem from Switzerland, Elena Pizzuto andVirginia Volterra from Italy, Elisabeth Engberg-Pedersen fromDenmark, Franz Dotter from Austria, Chrissostomos Papaspyrou fromGreece, Renate Fischer, Thomas Hanke and Hubert Wudtke from Germany.The volume's double title in German and English is due to the fact that thirteen of the sixteen papers have been written in English and only three in German. The Festschrift contributions cover topics about in the history of sign language communities, linguistic analyses in sign language research, and insights from education and training. Reflecting the authors' countries of origin, the papers relate to several European and non-European sign languages, and in many cases even compare several languages, with the authors generally succeeding in bringing out the important universal linguistic aspects.Preface: He had a DreamHistory and EvolutionOrigins of the American Deaf-World / Harlan Lane, Richard C. Pillard,Mary FrenchHow the Alphabet Came to be Used in a Sign Language / Carol A. PaddenThe Dictionary of the Abbé de l'Epée And His 'Methodical Signs' /Renate FischerThe Gesture-Language Interface: Evidence from Signed Languages /Sherman WilcoxPromising Progress / Jim KyleSign Language ResearchSign Language ResearchThe Representation of Motion Events in Signed Language and Gesture /Adam SchembriSign, Stroke and the / Bencie WollGestures in Signing: The Presentation Gesture in Danish Sign Language / Elisabeth Engberg-PedersenNegationsformen in der Österreichischen Gebärdensprache / AndreaSkant, Ingeborg Okorn, Elisabeth Bergmeister, Franz Dotter, MarleneHilzensauer, Manuela Hobel, Klaudia Krammer, Reinhold Orter, NatalieUnterbergerThe Interpretation of Signs By (Hearing and Deaf) Members ofDifferent Cultures / Penny Boyes Braem, Elena Pizzuto, VirginiaVolterraCross-linguistic Perspectives on Sign Language and LiteracyDevelopment / Philip M. PrinzPhrase Structure in ASL and ÖGS / Ronnie WilburHamNoSys in a Sign Language Generation Context / Thomas HankeEducation and TrainingWhat a Deaf Child Needs to See: Advantages of a Natural Sign Language over a Sign System / Nini Hoiting, Dan I. SlobinIntegration Gehörloser in das allgemeine Bildungswesen: Überwindung der Sprachbarriere / Chrissostomos PapaspyrouGehörlose Kinder und ihre hörenden Erzieher, Hubert Wudtke