Business Naming Challenge in an EFL Context: Local Names vs. English Names


Dağ Akbaş R.

in: The Social Sciences Agenda 2020: Turkey and Eastern Black Sea, Musa Yavuz Alptekin, Editor, Serander Yayınları, Trabzon, pp.305-318, 2020

  • Publication Type: Book Chapter / Chapter Research Book
  • Publication Date: 2020
  • Publisher: Serander Yayınları
  • City: Trabzon
  • Page Numbers: pp.305-318
  • Editors: Musa Yavuz Alptekin, Editor
  • Karadeniz Technical University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Worldwide supremacy of English language has manifested itself in every facets of life

from art to business. Brand names, window displays, billboards and advertisements are among

the basic manifestations of English language dominance in business context. As an

encompassing sign of English language, business naming practice in a Turkish local context is

taken into consideration in the current study. It has been observed that while many owners

tend to prefer English or Englishized names for their business, several of them seem to resist

this tendency by preferring original Turkish local names. The study aims to reveal and

compare the reasons behind the business naming preferences of these two parties (those who

prefer English names and who prefer local names) by focusing on a university district of a city, a touristic spot located on the north-eastern part of Turkey. To this end, this qualitative

case study employs observations and interviews as data collection instruments.

Keywords: Sociolinguistic, Language Corruption, English, Business naming