Tradition and Transmission: Semiotic Landscapes of Gong Fu in South China

Abstract

Tensions between cultural heritage and global modernity can surface through language/literacy practices and identity representations in institutional settings (e.g., educational, health). This study investigates these tensions through the semiotic landscape in Chinese gong fu training clubs. Based in xiang [象] theory—a Chinese semiotic system—and geosemiotics, we examine how semiotic assemblages and spatial repertoires are used to interweave typography, cultural identity, and health education. The semiotics of gong fu are analyzed based on 392 photographic artifacts from three training clubs in linguistically diverse South China. We argue that gong fu is represented in the spatial repertoires and semiotic assemblages of these clubs as a nexus of historical legacy and modernity, foregrounding institutional identity. By incorporating the theoretical underpinnings of xiang, we identified stylized displays designed to articulate reverence for cultural heritage and showed how these institutions index Chinese culture through use of shi xiang and jia xiang in the linguistic landscape. The study contributes to our understanding of how xiang theory bridges traditional Chinese semiotics with contemporary sociolinguistic practices, offering a culturally grounded framework to decode hybrid identities in globalizing contexts and informing heritage literacy initiatives in community-based education.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Journal of Language Identity & Education, 2026 · DOI ↗