Sutton SignWriting and Formal SignWriting Through the Framework

This working paper applies the full-path critique framework to Sutton SignWriting and Formal SignWriting. It distinguishes Sutton SignWriting as the human writing system from Formal SignWriting as the technical text model that preserves written signs for storage, search, processing, and rendering. The layer-level judgment is strong for both: Sutton SignWriting as plane-based signed writing centered on written signs, signboxes, authored space, convention, and practice; Formal SignWriting as a technical model and encoding framework. The combined system is treated as a documented full-path candidate while adoption, literacy outcomes, handwriting practice, institutional stewardship, and unresolved standards questions are routed to the evidence, research, infrastructure, and Unicode-facing series.