Dubai’s Deeply Able initiative offers a starting point for learning Emirati Sign Language, with Deaf expertise at the centre of the lesson.
Learning to greet someone in their language is a small act with a practical consequence: it changes who has to do the work of starting a conversation. Deeply Able, a new initiative from Shamal Holding, invites people in Dubai to make that effort through Emirati Sign Language.
The programme, announced on 1 October, begins with an expression of welcome, “Marhaba Al-Saa”. Its public learning hub brings together lessons intended for everyday interactions. For a hearing person unsure where to begin, a short, replayable lesson offers a manageable first step, with a clear route back for practice.
Learn from the people who use the language
Deaf educator and Emirati Sign Language instructor Abdulsalam Zourob co-created the curriculum and public lessons with Eton Institute, with input from members of the Deaf community. The Deeply Able hub describes a progression from one sign to 20, alongside an Emirati alphabet section.
Zourob’s published contribution to the hub explains the wider point: “When hearing people learn a few signs, responsibility for communication becomes more shared.” The words come from the initiative’s website, rather than an interview with Treppan. They are a useful way to approach the lessons: as something hearing learners can take responsibility for, rather than a demand that Deaf people make themselves easier to understand.
The first film was made underwater at Deep Dive Dubai. Divers already depend on visual signals, which gives the launch a memorable setting. Emirati Sign Language, however, is a language in its own right. A diving signal and a signed conversation have different purposes; learning a welcome is the beginning of learning, rather than fluency.
A place for practice in daily life
Shamal says the initiative will extend through guest-facing teams at destinations including Five Guys, Dubai Harbour, Kite Beach, Skydive Dubai and Deep Dive Dubai. The public hub describes that wider introduction as phased. Visitors should therefore avoid assuming every employee at every venue has already completed the training.
For a business, the useful follow-through happens after the first lesson. Can staff make time to communicate? Can a guest choose writing or another accessible way to exchange information? Is help available when a request becomes more detailed? A greeting makes an opening, but the service that follows determines whether the person can use the place comfortably.
For an individual learner, start with the instructor’s video, replay it slowly and return to it another day. Watch the whole demonstration rather than treating a hand shape as an isolated symbol. Use the linked lessons as the reference; a written description or improvised drawing is a poor substitute for seeing the language properly taught.
Where technology needs care
The launch also includes a signing avatar developed with accessibility company Eshara. Shamal describes it as a way to display selected words and phrases on participating websites. Treppan has not independently assessed its translation accuracy or how well it handles more complex exchanges.
That distinction matters. The World Federation of the Deaf and World Association of Sign Language Interpreters have warned against replacing human signers with avatars, explaining that language depends on context and culture as well as individual words. Their broader accessibility guidance also calls for consultation with representative Deaf organisations when technologies affect Deaf people’s lives.
An avatar can be considered as a limited learning aid without treating it as sufficient access for a medical appointment, an important decision or a complicated conversation. Deaf users’ assessment of whether something works should carry weight throughout its development.
Deeply Able gives Dubai residents a concrete place to start. Open the lesson, learn a greeting and keep practising. The worthwhile ambition is an ordinary one: more everyday encounters in which communication is a shared effort.
Lead image: Emirati Sign Language training for Shamal and Five Guys employees. Courtesy of Shamal Holding.
