Save

Constructing Identities through Multilingualism and Multiscriptualism

The Linguistic Landscape in Dutch and Belgian Chinatowns

多元语言文字中的认同建构——以荷兰、比利 时唐人街的语言风貌为例

In: Journal of Chinese Overseas
Authors:
Xiaomei Wang (王晓梅) University of Malaya wangxm@um.edu.my

Search for other papers by Xiaomei Wang (王晓梅) in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
and
Hans Van de Velde (汉范田) Fryske Akademy HVandeVelde@fryske-akademy.nl

Search for other papers by Hans Van de Velde (汉范田) in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed Close
Online Publication Date:
27 Oct 2015
Download Citation Get Permissions

Access options

Get access to the full article by using one of the access options below.

Institutional Login

Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials

Login via Institution

Purchase

Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):

$40.00
Add to Cart

Other access options

Rent on DeepDyve
Redeem Access Token

This paper examines characteristics of the linguistic landscape (ll) in Chinatowns in Belgium and the Netherlands. Fieldwork was conducted in four cities in the Netherlands (Amsterdam, Utrecht, The Hague, and Rotterdam) and two in Belgium (Brussels and Antwerp). All these cities are situated in the Dutch language area, but Brussels is officially bilingual French-Dutch. In the study, the traditional approach in linguistic landscape studies was combined with an ethnographic approach, in which shopkeepers were interviewed about language and script choice in their signs. The quantitative analysis shows that Chinese shows up in more than three quarters of all signs and that in almost 60 per cent of the signs Chinese is the dominant language. Dutch (the language of the region) and English (the international language) show up in almost half the signs. French shows up almost exclusively in Brussels, where Dutch is less used in signs. The analysis also shows interesting differences in script types between the cities. The presence of different types of Chinese character and pinyin systems indexes the Chineseness of the community, the origin of the local Chinese population, the position of the different establishments in the host countries, and the tendency of these Chinese immigrants to localize. We will show how these small overseas-Chinese communities construct and express their new identity by means of multilingualism and multiscriptualism.

本文探讨比利时、荷兰两国唐人街语言风貌的特点。相关田野调查工作于荷兰四个城市（阿姆斯特丹、乌特勒支、海牙、鹿特丹）及比利时两个城市（布鲁塞尔、安特卫普）展开。这些城市都位于荷兰语区域，不过布鲁塞尔是荷兰语与法语官方双语地区。本研究将传统的语言风貌研究方法与民族志学相结合，针对公共标识的语言文字选择访问了相关业者。定量分析显示，超过四分之三的招牌都使用了中文，而且有大约百分之六十的招牌以中文为主导语言。地区语言荷兰语和国际语言英语出现在大约一半的招牌中，法语基本只出现在布鲁塞尔，而荷兰语在该地则很少使用。分析也显示，六地唐人街的文字类型选择有所不同。不同汉字类型、拼音体系的出现标志着社区的华人性、华人人口来源、不同行业在所居国的处境以及华人移民本土化的趋势。我们将在文中展示这些小型的海外华人社区如何通过多语多文来建构及表达他们新的认同。
Title:
Constructing Identities through Multilingualism and MultiscriptualismThe Linguistic Landscape in Dutch and Belgian Chinatowns多元语言文字中的认同建构——以荷兰、比利 时唐人街的语言风貌为例
Article Type:
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1163/17932548-12341302
Language:
English
Pages:
119–145
Keywords:
linguistic landscape; Chinese; scripts; identity; multilingualism; the Netherlands; Belgium;
In:
Journal of Chinese Overseas
In:
Volume 11: Issue 2
Publisher:
Brill
E-ISSN:
1793-2548
Print ISSN:
1793-0391
Subjects:
China, Asian Studies, Asian Studies, Social Sciences, Chinese History, History

Content Metrics

All Time Past 365 days Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 2015 221 41
Full Text Views 549 17 4
PDF Views & Downloads 490 228 5