Linguistic Characteristics and Cultural Connotations of English and Chinese Shop Names 第3页
4.3 The Comparison of Number Use between Different Cultures
What is worthy to be mentioned is that in shop names, numbers serve a particular function. Some numbers carry with them a special cultural color in a special cultural atmosphere. For Chinese people, eight (8) and six (6) symbol luck and wealthy, while for the westerners, they prefer odd numbers like one (1) or three (3) except thirteen (13). The westerners prefer to present gifts in odd numbers, like one box of candies, three apples and so on. In westerners’ eye, the number seven (7) is a lucky one, because one usually wins the game if the number seven comes to him or her. Five thousand years of Chinese culture has nurtured many allusions and vivid metaphors. Shop names with numbers in them are characterized as being simple in structure and explicit in meaning. In particular, such names are original and easy to be memorized, so the consumers tend to pay particular attention to them. For example, Yi Pin Xiang Cai Guan (a restaurant, Yi for One; Yi Pin Xiang means being delicious at the first taste), Si Xi Tang (Si for four; Si Xi means four happiness), Wu Huan Bin Guan (a hotel, Wu for five; Wu Huan means five rings which further implies union.), Jin Liu Fu Jiu Lou (a place for drinking, Liu For Six; Jin Liu Fu means full of golden happiness), Wan Fu Supermarket (Wan for ten thousand; Wan Fu means as much happiness as possible.)
In foreign countries, shop names with numbers are not as common as in China, but such shops are closely related with people’s clothing, food, shelter and transportation. Therefore, they are exceptionally appealing. In terms of structure, the “number shop names” are divided into two groups: one completely composed of numbers and the other consisting of numbers and non-numbers. The complete ones are 21(an advanced restaurant in New York), 99(a grocery in which each commodity is no more than one dollar), 7-11(a convenient shop), 5-7-9(a clothing shop; 5-7-9 symbolizes the sizes.) Other examples are 33 Flavors (an ice cream store), Big5 (a sports shop), Lumber 88,123 DVD, Four Seasons and Supper 8 Motel
5 The Trace of Nature in Shop Names
The process of industrialization and urbanization offers a brand new life mode for people. However, while enjoying the fruit of modern civilization, people are also suffering pressure from all aspects of life: overgrowing population, crowded transportation, environmental pollution, fast pace of life and so on. They have to seek everywhere for somewhere relaxing and tranquil so as to recover mentally and physically. “Embracing Nature” is regarded as a spiritual pursuit and universal cultural fashion.
The businessmen know very well about the consumers’ desire to return to nature. Therefore, they spare no effort to create a country-like atmosphere that serves as an irresistible temptation to those who are troubled by the bustle and hustle of the city life.
As a commercial need, “shop names” are apt to take the theme of nostalgia and intimate relationship with animals or plants, aiming to appeal to customers and stimulate consumption.
In general, English and Chinese shop names are classified into three groups:
5.1 Local Features and Pastoral Life
Some Chinese shop names carry with them distinct local features, such as Xi Bei Jiao Zi Cheng (a dumpling restaurant in Northwest), Yi Meng Xiao Chi (a snack shop in Yi Meng District), Shan Xian Yang Rou Tang (a mutton soup shop in Shan County), Tai Wan Chan Zui Ya (Tai Wan’s famous gluttonous duck), De Zhou Pa Ji Dian (De Zhou, a small city in Shan Dong Province, is famous for “Pa Ji”, a sort of chicken), and Wei Shan Hu Yu Guan (a fish restaurant, Wei Shan Hu is abundant with fish).
Similarly, English shop names are also trying to work on the theme--embracing nature. The instances as follows will clearly illustrate that Chinese and Western cultures are alike in this respect: Kentucky Fried Chicken, Monroe Hardware, Carolina Waterbeds, Home Depot, Taco Bell, Bob’s Big Boy, Red Roof Inn, Broadway Furniture, Log Cabin Inn, Old Country Buffet, Pizza Hut, Cliff House, Old Country Buffet, Somerfield, Sand Lane Hotel, Pizza Hut, Bun and Burger Chain, Old Spaghetti, Country Kitchen, Bloomingdale’s, Ming Village, Time for You and so on.
5.2 Symbolic Meaning of Plants
The names of plants, especially those of flowers, grass and trees are often taken as shop names. It’s quite simple to justify this phenomenon. Some plants in Chinese culture are symbols of beauty that everybody admires. For example: Orchid Tang (orchid stands for nobility), Red Peony Mall (Peony for sumptuousness), Red Bean Clothing (Red Bean for missing), Pine Hotel (Pine for strong will), Rose Singing Hall (Rose for love). [6]
You can also find some plants with special symbolic meanings in English shop names, like Rose Garden (a restaurant, rose for love), Lily Hotel (lily for purity), Daffodil (a lady’s clothing shop; daffodil symbolizes spring and happiness in England). [7]
5.3 Animals’ Names for Consumers’ Associations
The animal names in Chinese shop names are often modified by another word to constitute a disyllabic one. For example, Golden Horse Hotel, Spring Swallow Restaurant, Silver Elephant Clothing, and Soaring Eagle Hardware Store. In addition, some shop names are only animal names without any modifier, like Lark Acoustics Store, Five Wolves Clothing Store, Woodpecker Clothing Store, Crocodile Clothing Store and so on. Some shops are named with the legendary “dragon” and “phoenix” to show nobility, like Golden Phoenix Clothing Store, Dragon and Phoenix Wedding Gift Shop and so on.
Westerners take a fancy to animals, so shops with animals’ names just cater to such an animal-loving mind. Such animals as small busy bees, majestic and brave King Lion, arrogant and holy eagle, loyal dogs and powerful bears are all people’s favorites. For example, Bee-Rite (a convenient store), Lion’s Share (a restaurant), Bear’s Larir Food Fair (a food store), Army Eagle (a material store), Man’s Best Friend (a pets’ shop), Bird Hut (a pets’ shop), Happy Bear’s Kitchen Center, Red Lobster (a sea food store), Red Lion Inn and so on. The animals’ names in the shop names will surely bring benefits for business.
Due to cultural differences, what is auspicious and honorable in oriental people’s eye is evil and brutal to the westerners, like the bats and the dragons for shop names. In China, “dogs” are, more than often, related with what is degrading, such as “like a dog threatening people on the strength of its master’s power”, “no ivory issues from the mouth of a dog”, while westerners regard dogs as faithful friends so that “man’s best friends” came into being.
6 Conclusion
The cultural differences between the eastern and western nations are reflected in different associations caused by respective culture and such differences affect people’s ideas about how to name their shops.
As discussed above, there is a superb collection of shop names so that they themselves constitute an amazing world. Short as the shop names are, they are capable of displaying the simplicity and “cream” of languages. They are the crystallization of the businessmen’s wisdom and the fruits of the old civilization and the modern fashion. “Shop names”, on one side, reflect people’s ideal and changeable psychology as well as the colorful connotations of the specific culture. Therefore, research of the “shop names” is a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural study, and such a research is getting more and more important in today’s world with rapid economic development and strengthening cultural exchange.
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