Bilingual Signs Research Articles

How do design factors of stacked directional signs affect their visual cognition?

Stacked directional signs are widely used on Chinese roads, but research on them is relatively scarce. This study aimed to investigate the effects of the Language used, Layout format, Amount of information, and use of Separating lines on the visual cognition of stacked directional signs. A visual cognition experiment involving thirty-two drivers was conducted, and the reaction time and response accuracy were recorded. The results revealed that a greater Amount of information was correlated with increased visual cognition reaction times. Bilingual signs exhibited significantly greater reaction times compared to monolingual counterparts, while a simpler Layout format resulted in shorter reaction times. The Language used, Amount of information, Layout format, and use of Separating lines were in decreasing order of importance for visual cognition reaction time, with a high Amount of information having the greatest effect. The implications of these findings can be applied to the design and optimisation of stacked directional signs.

Function and Use of Language in Linguistic Landscape Signs at Jakarta Train Station

This research analyzes the function and use of language in Linguistic Landscape signs at three train stations in Jakarta, namely Gambir station, Manggarai station, and Dukuh Atas BNI MRT station. This research examines how Linguistic Landscape signs affect passenger accessibility and comfort. This research uses a qualitative descriptive method, and data is collected through field observations, photo documentation and passenger interviews. Then, the data analysis technique uses the Miles and Huberman (2019) technique, data reduction, data display, and verification. The results of this research show that most of the signs at the three stations are bilingual signs in Indonesian-English, followed by monolingual signs in English and Indonesian. The Linguistic Landscape signs at this station have proven effective in providing information that is easy to understand and easily accessible to local and foreign passengers. These signs also increase accessibility and comfort for passengers at the station. This research contributes to understanding the function and use of language in the Linguistic Landscape of public spaces, especially at train stations.

Pronominal address in the linguistic landscape of Hispanic Philadelphia

Abstract This study explores pronominal address forms in the linguistic landscape of Hispanic Philadelphia, examining how Spanish-speaking communities use second-person singular pronouns (tú, usted, vos) in public signage. The research objectives were to identify which pronouns of address are employed and determine the variables influencing their usage. A corpus of 250 signs was analyzed across three Hispanic neighborhoods and virtual spaces, considering variables such as location, authorship, language composition, and speech act. Chi-squared tests and logistic regression were used to assess the impact of these variables on pronoun choice. The findings reveal that only “tú” and “usted” are present in the linguistic landscape, with “tú” being slightly more prevalent (55.2%). Language composition (p = 0.035) and speech act (p < 0.001) significantly influence pronoun selection, while location and authorship do not. Bilingual signs tend to favor “usted”, whereas monolingual signs prefer “tú”. Regarding speech acts, requests are more likely to use “usted”, while invitations and persuasive messages favor “tú”. The study concludes that while there is no evidence of a new speech community emerging, there is a convergence in pronominal use across diverse Hispanic neighborhoods, suggesting linguistic accommodation in written language. These findings contribute to our understanding of pronominal treatment in diasporic contexts and highlight the complexity of address forms in Spanish.

BILINGUAL ADVERTISING COMMUNICATION IN A DIACHRONIC ASPECT (BASED ON RUSSIAN AND CHINESE ADVERTISING SIGNS IN HARBIN, CHINA)

The article discusses the features of the Russian Chinese pidgin against the background of Russian-Chinese intercultural communication from different points of view in terms of the formation and development of regional cultural linguistics. A diachronic study of bilingual advertising communication based on signboards is carried out from the sociolinguistic and linguistic perspectives. The object of the study is the lexicon of two types of pidgin from Chinese-Russian pidgin dictionaries and the Harbin dialect dictionarу as long as Chinese-Russian bilingual signs in the city of Harbin from 1902 to the present day. The change of the dominant language and translation strategy in bilingual advertising communication is analyzed.

Learning L2 Through the Linguistic Landscape

This research investigates the students’ awareness of the linguistic landscape (LL) they are exposed to in their daily life. This includes signs, posters, advertisements, billboards, etc. The researchers believe that the students are not aware of the amount of L2 available to them every day outside the classroom. As language teachers, the researchers trust that drawing students’ attention to this language, which is more authentic and contextualized (Rowland, 2013; Dumanig & David, 2019), will open doors for autonomous language learning. For this study, the students completed a questionnaire that highlights their level of awareness and draws their attention to the LL around them. Then, they were asked to take pictures of bilingual signs and posters …etc. from the landscape they are exposed to on campus. The students worked in groups to compare and discuss the pictures that they had taken using a guided task designed by the researchers. The results show that most participants notice the amount of English language available in the real world, but they are not fully aware of its learning potential. Based on these results, the researchers provide practical suggestions for the classroom.

Study on the International Publicity of Red Scenic Spots in Baoding

Since China entered the new era, the "going out" strategy of Chinese culture has been strongly advocated. Improving the international publicity of red scenic spots is an important way to implement the strategy. The paper studies the international publicity of red scenic spots in Baoding through field investigation and interview. Then, the paper focuses on summarizing the existing problems from the international publicity of red scenic spots in Baoding from the current situation of the website construction, the English translation examples of representative red scenic spots, and the bilingual signs construction. According to these common problems, the paper puts forward targeted suggestions to different subjects such as the Baoding government and the public, benefiting the improvement of international publicity of red scenic spots in Baoding and promoting cultural communication between China and foreign countries.

Study on the Translation of Bilingual Signs of Cultural Tourism in Baoding under the Background of Global Tourism

In the process of building a new pattern of global tourism and promoting the transformation and upgrading of tourism structure, it is of great significance to standardize the construction of bilingual signs of cultural tourism. This paper takes the tourism and cultural entertainment sections of the English Translations of Public Signs in Baoding (Trial) as the research object and comprehensively uses literature research, questionnaire survey, qualitative analysis and other methods to point out the shortcomings of the existing research on the translation of bilingual signs in Baoding. On the basis of the research, from the four dimensions of accuracy, standardization, cultural differences and humanity of bilingual signs translation, this paper analyzes some errors in the Trial, discusses the relevant translation strategies, and gives some reasonable suggestions to the government. In this case, the construction of bilingual signs in cultural tourism will be more in line with the development goals of global tourism.

Sign Bilingualism Method Bridging the Gap between Language and Literacy among Deaf Learners

The education of Deaf/d students faced unique education challenges, particularly in the language and literacy development. This paper provides a comprehensive overview current education system of Deaf. It addresses critical issues such as language acquisition, literacy proficiency, mathematical learning, and logical problem-solving skills among Deaf learners. The paper underscores the importance of the sign bilingualism method in the education of Deaf individuals, emphasizing its role in bridging the gap between language and literacy development. It stresses the pivotal role of Sign Bilingualism in achieving objective language development and its use in literacy development. By recognizing the significance of Sign Bilingualism in Deaf education, educators and stakeholders can contribute to a more inclusive learning environment for Deaf learners.

Domain dichotomy and sociolinguistic inequality in Philippine museum spaces

Abstract The prevailing notion on the scholastic domains of English and Filipino is that the former is used for science, whereas the latter is reserved for the social sciences. Despite its questionable veracity, this domain dichotomy has nevertheless been adopted in Philippine education, particularly in the 1974 Bilingual Education Policy (Sibayan, 1978; Gonzalez, 1990). Using Scollon and Scollon’s (2003) concept of emplacement and Kress and van Leeuwen’s (1996) information value as theoretical points of departure and Tupas’ (2008, 2015a) ‘Unequal Englishes’ paradigm as an analytical framework, this paper investigates whether this dichotomy has permeated into the Linguistic Landscapes of two national museums in Manila. It finds that there is a strong tendency for the natural history museum to privilege English in bilingual signs and the anthropological museum to privilege Filipino, thereby suggesting that this split has already been reified in language practices outside the realm of education policy making and politics.

Implementing co-enrollment in preschool education in China: A case study

ABSTRACT This study aims to document the implementation of sign bilingualism and co-enrollment education in a kindergarten in Quzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, to identify the major characteristics of the programme, and to report findings of children’s language in terms of vocabulary and surveys on the views and attitudes of the stakeholders of the programme, including deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) as well as hearing children and teachers. The results indicate that (a) both deaf and hearing teachers enjoy working in the Sign Bilingualism and Co-enrollment (SLCO) class and believe it is beneficial for their professional development; (b) parents of both DHH children and hearing children are happy to send their children to the SLCO class; (c) the teachers and parents agree that the SLCO programme is helpful for the overall development of not only the DHH children but also the hearing children. They believe that such an environment benefits the children's language and communication skills and the development of self-confidence and social cognition; (d) both the teachers and parents believe that the DHH children and their hearing peers get along well with each other in the SLCO class and also enjoy learning sign language. Furthermore, they all agree that the SLCO programme is promising and should be continued in the current school and implemented in more schools.

The linguistic landscape of the Neryungrinsky district of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia): an analysis of bilingual signs of educational institutions

According to Article 35 of the Law on Languages of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), state and municipal institutions are required to have official signs for both official languages of the Republic, Yakut and Russian, and for districts densely populated by indigenous northern minorities, for their languages, which are defined by the law as official languages. The aim of this research is to analyse the errors made in translating the official signs of educational institutions in the Neryungrinsky district of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). To accomplish this objective, the following tasks were carried out: 1. Collecting and sorting photographs of signs of educational institutions; 2. Analysing the source text in Russian, i.e. highlighting the order of presentation of information about the institution; 3. Analysing the translated text, i.e. evaluating the accuracy of the translation and identifying translation errors; 4. Categorising translation errors into five groups: graphic errors, spelling errors, errors in translating abbreviations, word order errors and grammatical errors; 5. Linguistic analysis of the identified errors; 6. Development of the correct version of the translation of the signs. The research uses statistical counting and comparison methods to identify the schemes of presentation of information about institutions on signboards, methods of observation and comparison of signboard texts to develop the most optimal translation option in the presence of several translation options for the same information, and methods of analysis and synthesis to describe translation errors and justify the correct translation option. Practical recommendations in the form of schemes and vocabulary developed in the course of this study are universal and can be applied to other organisations of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia); this is the reason for the relevance of the study. The analysis outputs are applicable for training translators at M.K. Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University, citing the scientific, practical, and linguodidactic potential of this work.

Construction of Language Landscape in Newly Built Ancient Cities: A Case of Yizhou Ancient City, China

Introduction: As China has increasingly ushered in the era of mass tourism, ancient city or town tourism has gained popularity across the country, and a significant number of new scenic spots in ancient towns have been constructed. However, these lovely spots typically rely on conventional tourist and catering. Many tourists focus more on the issue of how to study old cities’ cultural ambiance and internal features on a deeper level, as well as the depth of its connotations. This paper examined the language landscape creation of the Yizhou Ancient City in Linyi, China, to delve into the language landscape building of newly built ancient town tourist attractions. Methodology: The data collection stage was mainly completed through field investigation, using digital cameras to shoot various language signs in the scenic spot. The data statistics stage mainly included random interviews, research objective determination, and data statistical analysis. Results: The results showed that the language signs in the scenic spot were mainly monolingual, supplemented by bilingual signs. There were two languages, Chinese and English, in which Chinese was the priority code, while English was a marginalized code in the language landscape of the scenic spot. The management department of scenic spots played a decisive role in constructing language landscapes. However, the managers of scenic spots and shop operators had not yet realized the economic value of language landscapes. The language landscape of Yizhou ancient City has the following problems: insufficient construction of a diversified language landscape, weak design sense of language landscape, lack of cultural connotation of language landscape, lack of innovation of language landscape construction and so on. Conclusion: It is suggested that the scenic spot management department should pay attention to different aspects in the future. They should pay attention to the potential value of language landscape construction, the unique linguistic landscape brand of the scenic spot should be constructed, and the multi-language needs of tourists.

Bilingual Signs: How Language Influences Shoppers

A growing use of bilingual signage among retailers in the United States begs the question, How do shoppers react to bilingual signs? How is such signage processed by consumers, what does it signal, and to what effect? Drawing from a national panel of American consumers, we exposed participants to examples of English, bilingual, or Spanish signage in a program of experiments that measured behavioral intentions, attitudes toward the stores and signs, and various expectations, perceptions, and impressions. Results show a direct effect of the language of the sign on shoppers’ behavioral intentions to engage with and buy from a store. Evidence shows that evaluations of signs shape evaluations of the stores they represent. Additionally, the language used on signs shapes shoppers’ expectations of service quality, with bilingual signs engendering favorable impressions of authenticity, inclusiveness, and interestingness. Signs using only a foreign language, by contrast, tend to lower expectations of service, communication, and inclusiveness.

PUBLIC SIGNS IN KOMODO NATIONAL PARK, FLORES-NTT: A LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE STUDY

This article aims at investigating language/s used in public signs in Taman Nasional Komodo (TNK), Labuan Bajo, Flores-NTT. It was designed as a qualitative study as the data are pictures, words, and sentences found in the public signs in TNK. The data were collected by doing an observation where every single sign found in TNK was photographed by using a Vivo y17 camera. After collecting the data, the data were analyzed by the following steps: data reduction, data display and data verification and conclusion. The result mentions that public signs in TNK divided into two types; they are monolingual and bilingual signs. The monolingual signs confirm that the public signs in TNK just use one language either Indonesian or English. However, bilingual refers to the public signs in TNK using both Indonesian and English for the same public sign. There are nine types of signs applied in TNK public signs. They are signs of place name, place manager, place description, map, history, notice, warning, appeal, and esthetic. Also, the signs have served purposes related to conveying information, representing symbols, and aiding in education.

Linguistic landscape in a rural Basque area: a case study in Ondarroa

ABSTRACT Basque is one of the official languages spoken in the Basque Country and although it is usually considered the minoritised language, its situation might be different in rural areas. The presence of Basque and Spanish has been previously reported in urban areas [Cenoz, J., & Gorter, D. (2006). Linguistic landscape and minority languages. International Journal of Multilingualism, 3(1), 67–80. https://doi.org/10.1080/14790710608668386], but their presence in rural areas remains unknown. To address this gap, the linguistic landscape (LL) of a rural town (Ondarroa, Bizkaia) is examined. For such a purpose, the signs in the main shopping street of Ondarroa (both top-down and bottom-up signs) are included in the analysis. The results show that contrary to the situation of Basque in urban areas (Cenoz & Gorter, 2006), Basque is the language with the largest presence in the LL of the street in Ondarroa. This is an indicative of the reproduction of the linguistic situation of the town, which subverts the current institutional linguistic policies. This particular LL could be considered as highly bilingual due to the presence of bilingual signs in Basque and Spanish; the presence of Spanish monolingual signs is minimal. The analysis of this LL would indicate that Basque sometimes is the majority language, at least in rural Basque areas.

Between audio and visuality – on the difficulties of learning sign languages on the basis of culinary lexis in the Polish Sign Language

The article focuses on the issue of audio and sign bilingualism – a topic that has not yet been thoroughly covered in Polish source literature. The most frequent research in the field of glottodidactics (understood as a specially developed plan that aims to implement literacy in the youngest children, by adapting to their mental, physical and emotional abilities.) focuses on bilingual people who use phonic languages (unimodal bilingualism – phonic). In terms of bilingualism of the deaf, one can speak of either unimodal bilingualism (communicating in two sign languages) or bimodal, sign-print bilingualism, in which a deaf person communicates both in a sign language and a phonic language (Polish) in its written form[1].Different modalities between phonic-modality Polish and the sign language, which is based on visual and spatial modalities, constitute difficulties both for people with hearing impairments, as well as hearing Poles willing to learn a sign language. The further section of the text examines difficulties involved in the acquisition of culinary lexis that may be experienced by hearing people attempting to learn a sign language, as well as deaf people who want to learn Polish.

Reframing Cultural Conceptions Through Translation

The translations of public signs distributed inside and outside Iraqi cities are random and of low quality. These translations contribute to reframing the conceptual image of cities as well as the communities inhabiting them. Moreover, the quality of these translated signs seems to underestimate the gradual development of translation as a profession and an academic field in this country. Conversely, it is unsatisfactory to continue producing and, more importantly, accepting these translations without in-depth revision. This study attempts to evaluate the translation of these signs. It reviews the strategies followed in their rendering from Arabic into English. Primarily, it does not only try to identify mistranslations, but also the impact these erroneous versions have on the viewers' perception of cities. It is a qualitative study that brings Kevin Lynch's (1960) Theory of 'the Image of the City' in Architecture to Translation Studies. The data used in the study come from two main sources: bilingual public signs and the responses of international viewers to a carefully-designed questionnaire. Results show that mistranslations of public signs do have a remarkable negative impact on reframing the viewers' perception of the mental image of Iraqi cities and their inhabitants(including, of course, translators). Revising the available bilingual signs and establishing a high committee responsible for monitoring are among the recommendations offered by the study.

Foreign Language Influence: A Case Study of English on Shop Signs in Taif City of Saudi Arabia

This study investigates the presence of English as the business language in Taif, Saudi Arabia. It also explores the influence and familiarity of English in the business sector. Linguistic landscape of 162 photos of commercial shops and interview of seven shop owners were employed to analyze the language use of shop signs in the Taif market. The study results were classified into three major categories, bilingual, transliteration and monolingual signs. The research has revealed that English is used as a prestigious language that is necessary to attract customers. However, Arabic presence is inevitably needed because of the linguistic background of the customers. The study concluded that in relation to the extent of using English in shop signs, and the frequent use of English words, whether on the bilingual signs or the transliteration ones, there is a need of policy formulation and implementation for lexical assimilation of borrowed words of English.

Chinese Grammatical Development of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children in a Sign Bilingualism and Coenrollment Program.

The literacy development of d/Deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh) children has always been a matter of grave concern among educators, and grammatical knowledge is said to constitute a major component such development. The present article reports on a study that examined the development of Chinese grammar among groups of d/Dhh and hearing children who received education through a sign bilingualism and coenrollment (SLCO) approach. Findings from administration of a prestandardized assessment tool showed that while the d/Dhh children generally lagged behind their hearing peers at all levels, the gap began to narrow from Primary 2 onward, and they caught up with their hearing peers in most except for a few grammatical constructions by Primary 4. Qualitative analysis revealed a similar developmental profile and similar degrees of difficulty in mastering the more complex constructions in written Chinese between the two groups of children.

The Representation of Unity, Social Sustainability, and National Identity in The Linguistic Landscape of Doha, Qatar

This study aims to investigate the ways in which the linguistic landscape of a territory might be influenced by socio-political changes and movements to ensure social and cultural sustainability. To this end, this article reports on a study that examined the linguistic landscape of Doha after certain social and political changes since 2017. Further, this study aimed to examine how messages about power, unity sustainability, and national identity were communicated through the use of monolingual and bilingual signs in Doha. The article concludes that sudden socio-political changes can exert an influence on the linguistic landscape, and the linguistic landscape can be used as a tool for communicating messages about unity, sustainability, power and national identity. Moreover, the findings of this study suggest that the linguistic landscape can be used to maintain and improve social and cultural sustainability.