History Main / HandSignals

* In ''Literature/DragonBones'' a character makes a handsign used by the rebels of a past revolution to signal his readiness to take part in another revolution. They need to use hand signals because ... well, they're at the court of the very king they want to start a revolution against.
* ''Literature/DarkLife'': The [[DeterminedHomesteader subsea pioneers]] known sign language given that is hard to speak when you have your lung filled with [[BreathableLiquid Liquigen]]. Their children even learn it before they speak.

* The Tanith of Literature/GauntsGhosts have a masterful grasp of this trope. Every member of the regiment has a wide vocabulary of hand signals, and specific characters that have been deafened by artillery fire communicate with a form of sign language.
** Some hand signs are more or less universal across the Guard; other regiments such as the [[Literature/CiaphasCain Valhallan 597th]] use them as well. The Ghosts have a much more nuanced version, though, as befits their role in scouting and infiltration.
* In ''Literature/RedSeasUnderRedSkies'', there's one scene where [[spoiler: Jean appears to be betraying Locke, and Locke panics because he misses Jean's hand signal letting him know it's all an act.]]
* In ''Franchise/{{Dune}}'' multiple characters use hand signals to give orders to their subordinates. In fact, there are entire sign languages developed separately by [[FeudingFamilies the Atreides and the Harkonnens]] that allow them to communicate irrelevant information verbally and important stuff, with their hands, making sure that even if they are overheard, the enemy won't learn anything.

* In the ''Literature/ProtectorOfTheSmall'' quartet the King's Own, a small and highly mobile mounted army, has hand signals for some situations that hardly need them, like a company moving out, and some for situations that do, like scouts reporting that something's close. Kel's [[AmplifiedAnimalAptitude sparrows]] soon learn them.

* ''Literature/BoredOfTheRings''. When Frito Bugger first sees Stomper the ranger in the Goode Eats & Lodging inn, Stomper uses a variety of hand gestures to invite Frito to meet him in the inn's bathroom in 5 minutes. The other patrons think he's playing Charades and chime in with suggestions.

* ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' has the Seanchan Empress, who communicates with one of her attendants known as her Voice using a personalized sign language dialect, and the Voice then pronounces it. The Empress directly addressing someone is either very good or very bad for them.

* Creator/DeanKoontz's ''Literature/{{Phantoms}}''. When the helicopter arrives at Snowfield, one of the men aboard gestures to the survivors asking where the supplies should be dropped. Lisa Yamaguchi gestures to the other survivors to form a circle, and the supplies are dropped in the middle of it.
* Literature/EarthsChildren has the Neanderthal people using sophisticated signs and signals. Most stories about Neanderthals written at this time did, because anthropologists believed that while Neanderthals were intelligent, they lacked a hyoid bone in their throat, which is necessary for sufficient variations in sound to evolve a complex spoken language. So they have a few spoken words and many signals. As ScienceMarchesOn, they found at least one Neanderthal with a hyoid bone.
* In one of the novels by Creator/AndrewVachss, PrivateDetective Burke buys an illegal handgun [[SilentOffer using only hand signals]], as a precaution against [[ProperlyParanoid either party wearing a wire]].

* Spaceship pilots in the Literature/LiadenUniverse have a well-developed set of hand signals, which often allows them to pass warnings or other information among themselves without outsiders being aware of it.

* ''Literature/WestOfEden''. Kerrick is a human child captured as a boy and raised as a HumanPet and translator by the reptilian Yilanè, who communicate through a combination of voice and changes in skin color. Because Kerrick can't do the latter, he's taught a sign language used by the Yilanè for communication in low visibility conditions.

* ''Literature/GenocidalOrgan'', by Project ITOH. A special forces team communicate this way despite their hands being covered in the nanotech-camoflage that makes them blend into their surroundings. However they also have software that enables their eyes to pick out the movement from their surroundings; what's used to detect an enemy waiting in ambush can also be used to see each other.

* And in ''Series/ICarly'', the "count down from 5 with silent "1" and pointing for "on" is Freddie's CatchPhrase.

** Leutnant Muesel gives a "stop" signal to his troops when they're approaching the wedding party.
** Inside a tavern a Greek Resistance member gives one to a bartender to turn out the light.

* ''Manga/DungeonNoOsananajimi'': Ryuuka and Van have their own sign language they can use to talk to one another that's developed enough to have an entire conversation without either speaking a word out loud.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Mus}}'': This game permits giving subtle hand or gesture signals to the partner, which may be spotted by the rival players. Under tournament play, these signals must be truthful, and are restricted to a certain set of signals.

The second worker seems to get it, so he... proceeds to pull down his pants and [[ADateWithRosiePalms publicly jerk off]], to the shock of the first worker. Who then got off and run three storeys down.\\

* ''Series/FawltyTowers'': There are two scenes where characters communicate by gestures.
** In "Communication Problems": Sybil asks Polly why she was counting a large amount of money. To cover for Basil betting on a horse behind Sybil's back, she says it was her own winnings. Suspecting that this is a lie, Sybil casually asks Polly what was the name of the horse (Dragonfly). From the other side of the room, Basil hilariously tries to mime it to her, by pretending to breathe fire and flapping his hands.
** In "Waldorf Salad", Terry tells Basil that he cannot stay late because he has his karate class; but Polly gives him away by mentioning Terry's Finnish girlfriend. Terry briefly tries to mime karate to Polly, but Basil realises what Terry is up to.

* ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya''. In the first season's BaseballEpisode, the title character uses overly complicated hand signals to give instructions to Kyon and Mikuru. Problem is, she didnt bother to tell her teammates what the signs meant, so Kyon snarks about her trying to [[MagicalGesture cast a spell]] to reduce the opposing pitcher's stats.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' fanfic ''FanFic/BringingOutTheBlue'', Zuko and Mai have a large vocabulary of them. Toph and Suki also use some with each other.
* This is a plot point in the ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' fic ''[[FanFic/FirstTrySeries First Try: Team 7]]''. A Kiri Hunter nin [[spoiler: who went to capture [[SparedByTheAdaptation Zabuza]] in Wave]] realize the other two groups are from Konoha from their sign language dialect, specifically their signed ''swear words'', which resulted into a brawl. Apparently people tend to sign in the prominent clan language of their team, but Naruto signs in a Uchiha accent, which he picked up from running away from the Uchiha police. He had to teach Sakura how to sign, while Sasuke refuses to sign out of embarrassment.

* In the climax of the ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch''[=/=]''Franchise/StarTrek'' crossover ''[[FanFic/StarlightSeries Starlight]]'', Jumba hides his hands behind his back to sign a code for Pleakley to enter into his communicator, to avoid their captor seeing. [[SoMuchForStealth If only he hadn't gotten it incorrect the first time...]]

* In the ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' fanfic ''FanFic/TwentyYearsLaterBunbunmaruSpiritNewsArchives'', Yukari's Oni Shikigami talks through these, in an odd manner bordering on the [[TheUnintelligible incomprehensible]].

** In ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', the EstablishingCharacterMoment for Drax the Destroyer has him threaten to kill Gamora, followed immediately by him misinterpreting Quill's "Cut the throat" signal.

* The Kindar in Zilpha Keatley Snyder's Literature/GreenSkyTrilogy have a few signs, mostly for respect and reverence. Hands up with palms down means to ask forgiveness.

* ''Genocidal Organ'', by Project ITOH. A special forces team communicate this way despite their hands being covered in the nanotech-camoflage that makes them blend into their surroundings. However they also have software that enables their eyes to pick out the movement from their surroundings; what's used to detect an enemy waiting in ambush can also be used to see each other.

* ''Literature/TheWhiteBone'': As the elephants search for the missing calf Date Bed, a cheetah named Me-Me approaches with the smell of Date Bed's dung on her paw. There are no [[{{Telepathy}} mind talker]]s available to communicate with her, so instead She-Screams launches into an elaborate series of noises and gestures to [[spoiler:offer her She-Snorts' unborn calf in exchange for helping them find Date Bed]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* The ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' episode "257-494" had Beast Boy trying to make all sorts of complicated hand signals while peering around a corner. The rest of the Titans simply walk past him. He keeps doing it for a few seconds before realizing they've moved on.

* ''Webcomic/DriveDaveKellet'': The Human Empire's royal family have a [[http://www.drivecomic.com/archive/100605.html secret language]] of elaborate hand signals.

* ''Series/{{UFO}}'' episodes.
** "Computer Affair". When a crew of SHADO soldiers is sent in on foot to attack a grounded UFO, the leader uses hand gestures to his troops to signal them to move forward.
** "Survival". When Paul Foster is leading some SHADO personnel in an attempt to capture a UFO on the Moon, he waves his hand to them to tell them to move up behind him.
** "Court Martial". When three SHADO security personnel are pursuing an escaping Colonel Foster, the leader holds up his hand to stop the others so they can be stationary while shooting at him.

-->"[[KillEmAll Kill them all.]]"

* In Season 12 of Machinima/RedVsBlue, Simmons (being animated in motion capture) does tons of vague hand signals to Grif, which includes waving his arm and snapping his fingers three times.

* ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory'':
** The Army Men and their Sergeant used them with each other repeatedly during the recon operation to find out what toys Andy was getting at his birthday party.

* ''LightNovel/VampireHunterD: Bloodlust'' (2000). Borgoff, the leader of the Marcus brothers, makes a "move forward" gesture to his men to order them to advance toward the vampire's carriage.