1 Introduction
This short analysis presents and discusses five different kinds of signs at a public swimming pool in Oulu, Finland. These signs were chosen for a closer study due to their various ways of using languages and pictures. Our observations focus on the role of the used languages and pictures in the signs. This study discusses why certain languages are used, what is the purpose of the signs in question and whether the language is grammatically correct or not. The issue is topical since the Oulu area has received a lot of asylum seekers during the past months. As the Finnish tabloid Iltalehti reported a few weeks ago, the refugees have started using public swimming pools and thus many instructions have been translated into several languages (Iltalehti, 16.1.2016).
2 Analyzing the Signs
2.1 Signs with Text and Pictures
The lay-out of the first sign can be divided into four horizontal sections. The most eye-catching element of the sign is the uppermost part with two visual images; two pictures in black, where the one on the left represents a hand holding a smartphone and taking a picture with it, and the one on the right hand side is a picture of a camera. The picture of an old-fashioned camera on the right side enforces the previous interpretation that the hand holding a smartphone is aiming to take a photograph. Both pictures are placed within their own separate red circle with a read line crossing over the picture. Together these two pictures convey a clear message of prohibiting photography. The same message has been written under the pictures in three languages: in Finnish, English, and Arabic. Nevertheless, each of these three languages has been written in a different font. The first piece of text under the pictures is in Finnish saying: “VALOKUVAAMINEN KIELLETTY” in capital letters. Following this, the same is repeated in English: “NO PHOTOGRAPHING”. This time the capital letters are written in bold and underlined. These modifications of the written text position the warnings in a hierarchical order, making the message in English stand out more. After these lines, at the very bottom of the sign, there is a text in Arabic letters. The text in Arabic is very poorly translated. Not only is the word order of the sentence absolutely wrong, but there is also a spelling error in the first word.
Jones (2012) explains that when analyzing pictures, it is important to understand that the relationship between “up” and “down” has strong connotations in many cultures. According to him, the upper part of pictures often offers general or abstract information, and the lower part gives more detailed information. (p. 76). This rule is applicable here too, as the most universal language, the pictures, have been positioned at the very uppermost part of the sign. This sign can be found in a very visible place near the changing rooms for women. There is the same sign when entering the changing rooms for men. We assume the sign has been produced by the staff of the swimming pool, and its message is aimed at everyone. Nevertheless, the message has been emphasized more in English, which possibly means that it is mostly directed to the visitors unfamiliar to Finnish language and the local culture.
The second picture that combines visual image and written text uses the same colours as the previous sign: red and black. The informative purpose of the sign is to let people know where to return rented swimsuits. On the top of the sign there is a text in Finnish, in red capital letters, saying “UIMA-ASUJEN JA PYYHKEIDEN PALAUTUS” and immediately under that, the equivalent in English “RENTED SWIMSUITS AND TOWELS HERE”. The difference between the meanings of these phrases is that in Finnish the notion of “rented” has been left out. This could also have a functional purpose, if there is an underlying assumption that the Finnish-speakers know it is only for the rented swimsuits. Another way of translating this sign could be “return rental swimsuits and towels here”. The lower part of the sign has three images, from left to right: a picture of a women’s swimsuit in black, in the middle an arrow in red pointing downwards, and on the right hand side a picture of a men’s swimsuit again in black. The sign is situated on the glass-window of the reception in the swimming pool, just above the basket where one can leave these items.
What these two signs have in common, is that they both use multimodal devices, they both combine visual images with written text that complement each other in order to create a meaning that reaches as many people as possible. The other rules and regulations of the swimming pool area are printed in a more enduring material, whereas these signs have been printed on paper, which possibly means they are reasonably new signs. The printed texture and the incoherence of the three languages in the first sign suggest that it has been made rather spontaneously. Excluding the Arabic writing, the language in the signs is flawless and clear. These signs have an informative, practical function.
2.2 Instructional Sign
The next sign to be discussed has both pictures and text, and the text is presented both in English and in Finnish. This is very common, as English appears mostly in bilingual signs in Finland, as Laitinen (2014, p. 70) mentions in his article. This example is taken from the signs located inside of the lockers in the dressing rooms of the swimming pool in question. Inside every locker there are four-part instructions on how to lock and unlock the doors by using a card and a key. The English translations include grammatical mistakes as well as mistranslations. Also, the pictures used in the sign are not very helpful, but rather slightly confusing.
There is a mistake already in the first section of the instructions: the sign says “Syötä kortti” in Finnish and “Put the card” in English. Instead of using the verb put one should use the verb insert in the sentence. The usage of the definite article in this case is grammatically incorrect, too, for there is no certain card that should be used to lock the door, but any card can be used. Also, the card has not been mentioned earlier, so the indefinite article should be used. This mistake is repeated the other way around in the last section of the instructions, where the sign says “Take a card”. The second section of the instructions is translated correctly, but the third part has a mistranslation. The sign says “Työnnä avain lukkoon, käännä auki” in Finnish and “Insert the key in the lock and turn the open” in English. Perhaps the translation was intended to be “…open the lock”.
There are a few quite interesting matters related to the signs in question; the most astonishing thing is that these are permanent signs fixed onto every single locker in the swimming pool, and yet the translations are very unclear and unprofessionally done. The question is why the translations have not been reviewed by a professional before they have been printed. Perhaps the person making the signs has been very positive about his or her language proficiency, and did not feel the need to have the translations examined. However, the primary purpose of the signs is to convey meaning and to help customers use the lockers correctly, which has not been very well accomplished. Maybe this has to do with the fact which Leppänen et al. (2011, p. 161) point out in their study: the Finns are increasingly confident about their English language skills, more so than average EU citizens. This might be the flip side of the improving language skills, as some people might even overestimate their own language proficiency.
2.3 Signs with Text Only
The last two signs consist of text only. Both of these signs have an informative and practical function and their message is flawless and clear. The first sign can be found on the door leading to the stand of the swimming pool. The text is written in English beginning with the word STOP! written in capital letters and ending in an exclamation mark. On the second line there are two words in English: Staff only! The sign is printed on a white paper and we assume that it is set there by the staff of the pool. The most interesting question is why this sign is written in English only. It might be that it is assumed that all the customers, even the Finnish speaking customers, understand the meaning of the word stop. Because of this the word stop is placed at the top of the sign. The phrase Staff only! is probably not understood by everyone and thus it is written underneath.
The stand of the pool is used in swimming competitions and other events, and many parents watch their children’s swimming practices from there. It is interesting, however, that although this sign clearly indicates that only the staff is allowed to enter the area, there are quite a number of people sitting in the stand every day. So, to whom is the message of this sign aimed? It seems that since it is written in English it is mainly directed to the non-Finnish speaking visitors. But if the Finnish-speaking customers are able to understand the message, too, how do they know whether they should or should not follow it?
The second sign includes both English and Finnish and it is aimed at a smaller group of people. It can be found upstairs on the door of a staff office. The text Pelastuslaitoksen Inbody-mittaus shows where the inbody measurements for the staff of the Department for Rescue Services are made. The text has been printed out with the official logo of the City of Oulu which indicates that the service is provided by the city. Although the staff of the Department for Rescue Services in Oulu are likely to be Finnish-speaking the writer has chosen to use the English word inbody instead of the Finnish equivalent kehonkoostumus. It is probably assumed that the people know the meaning of the word. The English word is not only shorter but also more appealing than the Finnish word. In this context English seems to be “a good candidate to be used in such a function, because it tends to be widely recognized, and evokes intertextual connotations to popular culture” (Laitinen, p. 65).
3 Conclusion
What surprised us when studying the signs in this certain public swimming pool was that not all the signs were translated into English or other languages. The only languages used in the signs were Finnish, English and Arabic alongside with pictures. The absence of the second national language of Finland, Swedish, was striking. The pictures were used when the language of the sign was too complicated or when it was important to make sure every customer would understand the message. Although the tabloid Iltalehti reported that the signs have been translated into several languages in this specific swimming pool, only three languages were, in fact, used.
It would be interesting to study why only certain signs are translated into other languages and why, for instance, languages like Swedish and Russian, which are widely spoken languages in Finland, are not present at all. In our study, we decided to concentrate on one specific swimming pool in Oulu, but noticed during the research that the public swimming pools of Oulu do not have similar kinds of signs. This means that there is no official language policy in these pools. Moreover, it would be interesting to compare the signs of this swimming pool with the signs of another swimming pool elsewhere in Finland.
List of References
Jones, Rodney H. DISCOURSE ANALYSIS, A resource book for students. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.
Laitinen Mikko, 60 kilometres by bicycle: observations of English in urban and rural Finland. De Gruyter Mouton. IJSL 2014; 228: 55-77.
Leppänen et al. National Survey on the English Language in Finland: Uses, meanings and attitudes.http://www.helsinki.fi/varieng/journal/volumes/05
English in Finland 