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A Place-Based Translation Framework for Fuzhou Youshen Ritual Symbols in Cultural and Creative Product Design

Bingran Zhao, Minxuan Huang*

Abstract


This article develops a place-based method for translating Fuzhou Youshen ritual signs into cultural and creative products. It addresses direct symbol transfer, loss of ritual meaning, and weak alignment between products and use contexts. Documentary research, field
observation, informal consultation, sign coding, comparative analysis, and research through design were combined. Deity images, ritual
objects, costume patterns, and behavioral-spatial signs were examined through Morris's syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic dimensions. The
framework contains three stages—meaning anchoring, formal reconstruction, and contextual adaptation—and four review questions concerning source traceability, semantic consistency, identity legibility, and contextual risk. The Ritual Reborn series was used for an author-led retrospective review. The results indicate that freedom of formal change decreases as a sign becomes more closely tied to divine identity, office, or
ritual regulation. The case demonstrates internal design coherence rather than user acceptance or market effectiveness.

Keywords


Fuzhou Youshen; Ritual signs; Morrisian semiotics; Place-based translation; Cultural and creative product design

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.70711/rcha.v4i8.10179

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