Mandarin names for sites as Britain woos Chinese
Print Edition
HARD-TO-PRONOUNCE British place names are getting a Mandarin makeover with sometimes surprising results, Britain’s tourism agency said yesterday as part of a campaign to encourage more Chinese tourists.
VisitBritain released 101 new suggested names for famous landmarks provided by the Chinese public through online polling on social media.
London’s iconic skyscraper “The Shard” could be “A tower allowing us to pluck stars from the sky” in Chinese, and Savile Row, well known for its high-end tailors, could become “Tall, rich, handsome street” or “Custom-made rich people street.”
The proposed Mandarin name for the Scottish delicacy “haggis” is “Made of sheep’s stomach and smells good,” while Edinburgh’s Royal Mile avenue in Scotland is: “A beautiful street with long history and profound culture.”
Hadrian’s Wall, the ruin that marked the northern frontier of the Roman Empire, is the grand-sounding “Wall of Eternity” and the seaside resort of Blackpool could be “A place that is happy to visit.”
“Digital engagement is one of our strengths and this campaign has been hugely effective at driving this with our potential Chinese visitors,” Sally Balcombe, chief executive of VisitBritain, said in a statement.
Chinese visitors to Britain spent nearly 500 million pounds (US$771 million) in 2013 and the government is aiming to double that amount by 2020.
The number of tourists to Britain reached a record-high of 34.8 million in 2014 — six percent higher than in 2013, VisitBritain said.
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