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Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences, 2020, 3(7); doi: 10.25236/AJHSS.2020.030715.

The Competition between Romanised Scripts in Public Space: a Linguistic Landscape Study of Shop Signs in Zhanjiang

Author(s)

Shanshan Xie*

Corresponding Author:
Shanshan Xie
Affiliation(s)

School of English Language and Culture, Xiamen University Tan Kah Kee College, Zhangzhou 363105, China
*Corresponding Author: [email protected]

Abstract

Linguistic landscape provides a gateway to capturing unnoticeable changes that are taking place in a given region. As economic globalisation is now expanding in the world, it is of research significance to see how the trend has been reflected in actual language practice. To find out the answer, this paper examines the code choice and the code patterns of shop signs in a less-affluent street of Zhanjiang. Despite the strong presence of Chinese in public space, the competition between Romanised scripts is evidently witnessed. Though English and Hanyu pinyin are popular Romanised systems in public signage, research findings show that on bilingual signs, English instead of Hanyu pinyin has won the favour of local shop owners because it is associated with internationalisation and high quality. As the influence of English continues to expand in China, the study suggests that even in less-affluent regions, English has begun to challenge the status of Hanyu pinyin in sign design at non-official level.

Keywords

Linguistic landscape, Zhanjiang, Globalisation, English, Hanyu pinyin

Cite This Paper

Shanshan Xie. The Competition between Romanised Scripts in Public Space: a Linguistic Landscape Study of Shop Signs in Zhanjiang. Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences (2020) Vol. 3, Issue 7: 133-142. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJHSS.2020.030715.

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