MAMMA ANTONIA, MAMA MARIA, MAMA MIA Kulturspezifika in der italienischen Markennamengebung

Abstract

AbstractIn today's world of globalized markets, growing international competitive pressure, and a consumer society characterized by an overflow of stimuli the genuine name of a brand as its cognitive anchor has become a strategic success factor. Brand names are considered as reflection of specific social and economical conditions and they allow within certain boundaries to anticipate the developmental trends in a linguistic system.The principles of and the trends in the creation of Italian brand names were outlined on the basis of 950 brand names. Cultural aspects were also incorporated in the analysis in as much as advertisement is always a culture specific issue. Thus the family is the most important social institution for an Italian which is confirmed by brand names such as MAMA MIA, IL BISCOTTO DELLA NONNA and COPPA DEL NONNO. The high degree of identification with the Catholic church becomes evident in brand names such as ARCA DI NOÈ, PANEANGELI, BONTÀ DIVINA. Also quite a number of Christian names of saints are to be found in Italian brand names, such as SAN BENEDETTO, SAN CARLO, SANTA LUCIA, SANTA ROSA. Tenderness in its broadest sense is another typical Italian resource for the creation of brand names (ABBRACCI, DOLCEZZE DI CAMPO, TENEREZZE). The analysis leads to a typology of brand names which contains role models for the creation of future names.This thesis represents an integral contribution to the long lasting demand for a closer cooperation between linguistic theory and economical and juridical practice. It illustrates which far-reaching results can be gained from dealing with aspects of Applied Linguistics within an interdisciplinary framework. This is particularly applicable to the practical utilization. Descriptive-synchronous studies like this thesis are a useful basis especially for the work of the creators of names. In particular export oriented branches have to consider carefully whether the name is appropriate for the use abroad. But also lawyers benefit from a better understanding of how names are composed e.g. in brand name related law suits.