Mixing up the names of Sweden and Switzerland in English is a relatively common snafu that happens to the best of us. However, what happens when this mix up becomes so commonplace in other countries that a public campaign is warranted to help clear up the issue? Both the Swedish and Swiss consulates in Shanghai created a joint campaign to help the Chinese differentiate between their two countries in Mandarin. The mix up of the Mandarin words for Sweden (Ruidian) and Switzerland (Ruishi) have become so common that the Swedes and the Swiss decided this situation warranted a public response and a competition for Mandarin speakers.
The Swedish Consul General to China, Viktoria Li, organized
the social media competition with the Swiss in which speakers of Mandarin send
in funny ways to tell the two countries apart. Entrants are allowed to send in
blog articles, cartoons, short films, photos, or any other type of media that
can help separate the two countries in the minds of the Chinese. To advertise
the competition, posters were created to give entrants ideas for their entries.
Two maps were created, one of Sweden and one of Switzerland, and each are
filled with different items or characters that represent each country. The
Swedish map, for example, depicts Pippi Longstocking, a viking, gay marriage,
Swedish meatballs, a moose, Alfred Nobel, and a reindeer. The Swiss map depicts
the Alps, chocolate, fondue, cows, a yodeler, a watch, and cheese.
Over two hundred entries were submitted in November of
last year for the competition, but only eighteen people were chosen as
finalists. On 12 December, the Swedish and Swiss Consulates awarded first place
to Chen Lin for her video titled "I teach you how to tell the difference
of Sweden and Switzerland in 5 minutes". For her efforts, Chen Lin was
awarded a twelve day trip to Sweden and Switzerland, and was asked to write
about her travels in blogs and on Weibo. This campaign was the first joint
venture for Sweden and Switzerland, and an opportunity for the Chinese public
to learn about the individual cultures and characteristics of the two
countries. Clearly, the Swedish and Swiss governments realize that having a foreign
national interpret and report on foreign cultures is much more conducive to
cultural exchange than simply talking at foreign publics. The next project for
the Swedish and Swiss consulates is resolving the same mix up for Spanish
speakers, in which the words are more closely related (Suecia versus Suiza).
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