Patterns of Language Use in the Urban Linguistic Landscape of a Minority-Region City: The Case of the Old Town District of Lijiang
Based on an exhaustive 2015 photographic survey of 568 signs (330 analysis units on Fuhui Road, 213 on Xinhua Street) in Lijiang's Old Town, this study examines language use in the linguistic landscape of a Naxi-majority tourist city. It finds multilingual signage — chiefly Chinese, Dongba script, and English — far more prevalent on the commercial, tourist-heavy Xinhua Street (72.3%) than on the government-office street Fuhui Road (53.9%). Chinese is the most frequently used and most visually salient language throughout. The Dongba script, despite ranking highly as the first-ordered language on signage due to tourism regulations, is never the most visually salient element and is understood by almost no ordinary Naxi speakers, indicating its role is largely symbolic and commercial rather than genuinely communicative. English use is widespread, reflecting Lijiang's high volume of international tourism.
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