Google honours 'Father of the Deaf'

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Today, the graphic logo at the top of the Google search engine - the 'Google Doodle' - honours the 306th birth of the Catholic priest and teacher who developed the first sign language for the deaf.

Fr Charles-Michel de l'Épée founded the first public school for the deaf. Dispelling the misconception that people with impaired hearing were incapable of learning, Épée developed a visual method that became the blueprint for the teaching of the deaf and that changed countless lives at a time when many deaf people were discriminated against.

The school began in 1760 and shortly thereafter was opened to the public and became the world's first free school for the deaf. It was originally located in a house at 14 rue des Moulins, butte Saint-Roch, near the Louvre in Paris.

Fr Charles-Michel died on 23 December 1789 in Paris, France.

To see more details about Fr Charles-Michel de l'Épée please visit:
www.google.com/doodles/charles-michel-de-lepees-306th-birthday