Language used on Commercial Shop Signs Owned by Chinese-Thai Entrepreneurs in Yaowarat Community A Case Study of the Chinese versus Thai Shop Names
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Abstract
This research studied the language used on the commercial signa of the shops owned by Chinese-Thai entrepreneurs in Yaowarat community. It uses the cases from the Chinese and Thai shop names to compare and find out the trend of naming the shops in both languages. The data are from the names of 290 Chinese and Thai shops owned by the Chinese-Thais living in the Yaowarat community. They were examined by using both qualitative and quantitative research. The analysed data and research results are presented in the form of table accompanied by descriptive analysis. The research analysed the language characteristics by focusing on the number of syllables, word origin, and the source of the shop name. It was found that 3 syllable names were popularly used for both the Chinese and Thai language shop signs, while the source of most of the shop names in both languages were names and surnames. Furthermore, the data from the shop names, in both Chinese and Thai, showed that the Chinese-Thai owned shops in the Yaowarat community mostly sold dry and fresh foods. The most common name for the Chinese language shop signs was “Lim” (林). The business types found were established businesses in service sector, which include hotels (大酒店、大旅社), restaurants (酒家、酒樓、飯店、酒樓、飯店、餐室), travel agents (旅行社), finance (银行、餉當), and food businesses (點心、餃子、燕窩). This research argues that the languages on commercial shop signs owned by Chinese-Thai entrepreneurs in the Yaowarat community present the popular trend for sho naming. Moreover, they reflect the language and history of Chinese-Thai people, the surname and family system, and other information of the businesses in the Yaowarat community.
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