Resumen de Policy negotiation, identity construction, and market adaptation: a multidimensional analysis of the linguistic landscape in Lhasa

Tengjiang Cui, Limei Bai, Xiangdong Gu

• This study, grounded in a triadic framework of policy negotiation, identity construction, and market adaptation, examines Lhasa’s linguistic landscape through mixed methods. Findings reveal that Chinese-Tibetan bilingual signage dominates public spaces, while English functions as a symbolic code of tourism and globalization. Specifically, Chinese occupies a central communicative and economic role, Tibetan embodies cultural and symbolic meaning across commercial, religious, and domestic contexts, and English is mostly confined to commercial areas for international visibility. Official signage prioritises Chinese for clarity, whereas private signage reflects market-driven flexibility. Perception data further indicate policy – identity – market tensions: Tibetan residents stress identity; shop owners adapt to audience needs; and tourists value Tibetan for its symbolic and experiential functions. These patterns reveal a negotiated linguistic order in which institutional regulation, identity practice, and economic logic interact dynamically to shape visibility and meaning in public space. The study offers a contextualised understanding of how multilingual practices are structured and contested in ethnic regions, offering insights for inclusive and adaptive language planning in Lhasa and comparable settings.