There is no one sign language in the EU. Basically every country has it's own, and the relations between the different sign languages are completely different from those of spoken languages. If you haven't learned any yet I'd suggest learn the local sign language used in your country and beware that there are also dialects, so you might have some problems communicating with people from other parts of your country. If you want to learn some sign language used in the EU pick a country.
this post was submitted on 21 Dec 2025
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french sign language is one that a lot of other sign languages drew from, so it might be a good starting point for finding similarities / etymologies of signs.
that said, you'll still need to learn those different sign languages from different places, in order to communicate with people there, just like with any spoken languages.
sign languages are typically very localised, due to Deaf communities often being fairly isolated. (Deaf people here in ireland have historically had difficulties communicating with one another, because signs would end up evolving differently between the girls' schools & boys' schools, for example)
I'd suggest contacting the local school/association for the deaf in your area.
Yeah, seems like it is extremely fragmented.
I can't offer real advice, but these seem like OK starting points:
Don't know, but I'd say focus more on the immediate areas you plan to be in. Really surprised there's not an international or at least EU standard, but I'm not seeing one recommended at a quick glance.