Title : Inside the Shop Names: Hybridity, Language Awareness and Globalization in the Linguistic Landscape of a Local Commercial Neighborhood in Bangkok

Author(s) : Chariya Prapobratanakul

Pages : 26-37

Abstract in English : The present study explores the patterns of
language use and the influence of English
on the shop names in the linguistic
landscape of Si Yan market, a local
commercial neighborhood in Bangkok,
Thailand with respect to script, lexicon
and syntax. Using photographs and
interviews with the business owners as
sources of data, analysis of the language
in shop names showed that a combination
of Thai script, lexicon and syntax were
found most often, followed by shop names
with a mix of Thai and English script,
lexicon and/or syntax. Shop names written
with English script, lexicon and syntax
were a distant third. Shop names written
in English script with Thai lexicon or
syntax were not found in the area. The
interviews with the business owners
revealed that most of the creators of the
shop names with a combination of Thai
and English script, lexicon or syntax were
not aware of the presence of English in the
shop names. This study suggests that
English lexical borrowing and the
hybridization of language provide
evidence not only of the globalization of
English but also of the subconscious
nature of the pervasive influence of
English on Thai.