Xiamen launches campaign to wipe out 'Chinglish'

Street signs with idiosyncratic English translations could soon be a thing of the past in Xiamen, a coastal city in East China's Fujian province, as the municipal government has launched a drive to check the city's English signs.

The campaign is part of the city's preparations for the 9th BRICS Summit, which will be held in Xiamen in September.

Chinese cities are famous for the large numbers of signs with unusual English translations lining their streets. Many of these signs were translated word-for-word from Chinese into English, creating a strange hybrid language that many refer to as "Chinglish".

Xiamen is determined to wipe out this relic of the early years of China's reform and opening-up, and has ordered several government organizations to assign teams of English graduates to check signs across the city.

Xiamen's administration of quality and technology supervision, foreign and overseas Chinese affairs office, traffic police force and landscape department have all taken part in the campaign so far.

An initial sweep of Huandao Road and other major roads near Bailuzhou Park and Gaoqi Airport revealed the necessity of the campaign. The inspectors found more than 80 "Chinglish" signs in just this small area of the city.

In May, Xiamen quality watchdog issued a set of standard English translations for signs in public areas, which recommends English translations for road and place names in Xiamen.

So far, more than 2,000 inaccurately translated road signs have been corrected, according to Xiamen civil affairs bureau.

A fingerpost on Gulangyu island in Xiamen, Fujian province, on Feb 26, 2012. [Photo/IC]