Филологические науки/ 9. Этно-, социо- и психолингвистика

Demidenko K.A., Podgornaya E.A.

Kemerovo Institute (branch)of Russian state university of trade and economics

Cultural representation of the world presented by brand names (the case of the United States, Germany and China)

A characteristic feature of modern science and linguistics in particular is expansion and deepening of the interdisciplinary research field. As noted by many researchers (V.Z. Demyankov, V.A. Maslova, E.S. Kubryakova, etc.), it is cognitive linguistics that is most open to interdisciplinary dialogue that may have caused the linguistic and cognitive "explosion" in Russian philology of recent years.

Mechanisms of cognitive linguistics are fruitfully applied in various sciences. According to some researchers (e.g. A.G. Kvyat), one of the most pressing areas of applied cognitive linguistics is the application of its conceptual apparatus to marketing. Various marketing concepts are interpreted in terms of cognitive linguistics. For example, positioning is defined as a procedure of programming customer’s world model in order to integrate product-related information into it [Kvyat 2010:11]. In marketing a brand name is understood as a trademark, but the brand is not just the name of the product, it certain words, symbols and images that have integral cultural significance. A brand can be defined as everything that distinguishes goods and services, or influences buyer’s purchasing decision in order to make him or her buy certain goods; it is the image formed in consumer’s mind, the efforts of the manufacturer of this product [Medvedeva 2012:4].

In many countries dependence of consumers’ purchasing decisions on the country where the product was designed and manufactured is currently a subject of various. Active globalization processes in the world economy and increasing educational level of consumers aroused to interest in the problem of consumers’ behavior being influenced by the country of product origin. [Skorobogatykh 2009].

An attempt of applying the methods of cognitive linguistics to studies of international marketing can be of significant interest. According to V. A. Maslova "...The study of how a person operates symbols while interpreting the world and himself/ herself in the world, combined linguistics and other disciplines that study human being and society..." [Maslova 2004:8].

In modern marketing the metaphor of goods competing not in stores but on cognitive "shelves" is used. This phenomenon is correlated with one of the key concepts of cognitive linguistics – "the model of the world", "representation of the world", etc. In our opinion, interdisciplinary approach requires the use of term "representation of the world".

N. Tkachenko compares consumers’ minds having "some mental cells corresponding to individual product categories" to a bookcase with a large number of individual stacks. "Each stack corresponds to a category of products. And some shelves are filled with specific brand names" [Tkachenko, 2007: 52].

We made an attempt to describe the "brand" representation of the world of students based on the theoretical postulates of cognitive linguistics. For this purpose a Directed Association Test was carried out among 18-22 year-old students studying in higher educational institutions of Kemerovo. The word-stimuli were the names of the countries which are well-known manufacturers of goods. The experiment involved 150 participants. The respondents were asked to write brand names they believe to belong to a specific country.

Systematization and analysis of the collected data will make it possible to create a model of cultural representation of the world as a whole and of individual countries in particular, to identify core/peripheral product categories both for individual countries and for the world, to determine the most frequent brands, and to demonstrate fundamental linguistic tendencies that explain why certain brands had been correctly or incorrectly embedded in students’ minds at the time of the experiment.

Because each stimulus received a different number of reactions, division on core / peripheral categories depended on the number of responses received by each country under review.

This article deals with three stimuli which [received] were given the greatest number of responses. Since respondents were Russian culture bearers, leading position belongs to the Russian Federation. The amount of collected data requires a separate publication to describe the Russian Federation as represented by brand names. According to the amount of received associations, next three countries are the U.S.A., Germany and China, all of which are included into the article under consideration.

USA

The survey contains 358 mentions of 95 brands which, according to the respondents, are associated with the United States.

The most frequent is Apple, mentioned 56 times. It should be noted that most of respondents (52) represented it correctly in English. Only 4 variations were incorrect: Aplle (1), Appel (2), Appole (1).

The next most popular brand Coca-Cola was named 41 times in 2 languages (31 in English, 10 in Russian), and was correctly reproduced 30 times: 21 in English and 9 in Russian – Кока-Кола. There were 11 variations: Coca cola (4), Coca Colla (3), Coka-Cola (1), Coco-Cole (1), Coco-cola (1), Кока Кола (1).

None of 26 mentions of brand McDonald's (10 in English, 15 in Russian) was correct, except for one graphic logo . Variations: McDonalds (1), Mc. Donalds (3), MC Donalds (1), Mac Donalds (1), MacDonald’s (1), Macdonalds (1), Mcdonalds (1), Mc Donaldc (1), Макдональдс (7), Макдональс (5), Макдоналс (1), Макдональц (1), Магдональд (1). Due to the absence of apostrophe in Russian language, the students had faced the problem of writing this particular brand name correctly. Another problem was the necessity to reproduce Scottish prefix Mc, which the respondents tried to solve using their own language resources with no success.

Brand Nike can be found 18 times, including 17 correct mentions: 16 in English, 1 in Russian (Найк). Only one incorrect variant was given – Nake.

All 16 references to Ford were correct (13 times in English, 3 times in Russian – Форд).

Car brand Chevrolet was presented 14 times. All 6 mentions in French were correct. Only 1 Russian variant out of 8 was accurate (Шеврале). The remaining 7 were an attempt of transliteration – correct (Шевролет – 5) and inexact: Шивралет (1), Шивролет (1). However, the official Russian name of this brand is a transcription in which, according to the rules of reading in French, consonant "t" at the end of a word is silent.

Well known brand Adidas was mentioned 11 times in the responses of the respondents: 10 times written correctly (8 in English, 2 in Russian (Адидас)), and only once incorrectly: Adidase.

All 9 mentions of brand Pepsi were correct: 8 in English (Pepsi (7), Pepsi Cola (1)), and 1 in Russian (Пепси).

Despite its popularity, all 8 times brand name Cadillac was written inaccurately with the following variations: Cadilac (2), Cadical (1), Кадилак (3), Коделак (2).

Brand names Microsoft and iPhone, belonging to the competitors in the field of technology, were referred to 8 times each. Microsoft was presented both in English (5), and Russian (Майкрософт – 3) correctly. As for iPhone, the correct version in English was given by six respondents, in Russian – by 1 respondent, accompanied by a graphic representation of the brand name logo of the gadget manufacturer - (Айфон). One respondent proposed the variant I-pnone.

Famous brand of jeans Levi's was found in answers 6 times. The correct version in English was mentioned only once, in Russian – 2 times (Ливайс). The rest were incorrect. In the proposed English version apostrophe was eliminated, having no analogues in the native language of the respondents: Levis (2). In Russian version an attempt of transcription and the phenomenon of dissimilation can be observed (letter "v" had been substituted with the letter "b": Libays).

Well-known since childhood brand Disney was mentioned 5 times. All respondents pointed out the correct variants – two in English, 3 in Russian (Дисней).

The next most frequently mentioned brand in the survey is Windows (5). The correct version in English was written 4 times. One of the interviewees introduced a particular product – a set of user services Windows live.

Brand names Hummer and Zic were correctly reproduced in English 4 times each.

Two of four correct references to the film company 20th Century Fox were given in abbreviated form (20 Fox).

Brand name of foodservice company KFC was pointed out four times, three of which are correct, one is not – KFK.

Fashion brand Calvin Klein was written correctly twice, and once letter "c" was substituted with "k": Kevin Clein. In English in a certain position, particularly before vowels e, i, y, letter "c" sounds [k]. This phenomenon is not typical for Russian language, where the sound [k] is reproduced by a single letter, which caused inaccuracy in the response of the informant.

Mentioning brand Shelby, all three respondents presented it in correct Russian (Шелби).

Brand names Lipton and Maybelline were introduced in the material for 3 times. Each of them was reproduced correctly 2 times in English. Tea name was also given correctly in Russian (Липтон). One more version of the brand name of beauty-product was incorrect – May be lline.

Brands Winston, Tefal, Nokia were correctly written in English by the respondents for 3 times.

None of the two mentions of Procter & Gamble was accurate: Procter & Gembel, Проктер and Гамбел. The mixture of Latin and Cyrillic characters in the second version should be noted.

Brand names Starbucks and Reebok are found in the students' responses 2 times. Both brands are accurately reproduced both in English and Russian (Старбакс, Рибок).

Playboy brand appears 2 times, first time with correct English spelling, second time with inaccurate: Play Boy.

The following 2 brands can be found in the material 2 times, and are reproduced in Russian correctly: perfumes Chanel (Шанель), Axe (Акс).

The names of these 15 brands were mentioned in the responses 2 times, all written in English correctly: Jeep, New Yorker, Pixar, Marlboro, Samsung, Blackberry, AMD, Intel, Facebook, Lay's, Timberland, GAP, Subway, GMC (once shortened as GM).

The following 37 brands were introduced by the respondents once and reproduced without any error in the original language (English, German, French): Vogue, Lacoste, Michael Kors, Mercedes, Fox Racing, Rock Shox, Kiko, NY Times, The Times, Paramount Pictures, New Line Cinema, Skyline Pictures, Universal Pictures, Relativity Media, Columbia pictures, Miramax films, Burger King, Lee Cooper, Collins, Guess, clothing Marlboro, H&M, Converse, Adio, Bud, Pringles, eBay, Casio, IBM, NHT, LG , Bosch, iPad, Android, iOS, Fly, Kindle.

Other brands found in a survey only once, were reproduced in Russian correctly (7 brands): Марк Джейкобс (Marc Jacobs), Порш (Porsche), Опель (Opel), Крайслер (Chrysler), Додж (Dodge), Марс (Mars), Лаки Страйк (Lucky Strike).

The following 6 brands were pointed out once in English or Russian. Respondents found it difficult to write them correctly. Correct brand names are given in brackets: Pantiac (Pontiac), Джек Денилс (Jack Daniel's), Хеппи Нилл (Happy Meal), Buik (Buiсk), Рэндт Ровер (Range Rover), Дольче Гобана (Dolce&Gabbana).

Though the experiment presupposed writing only brand names, some respondents mentioned cultural realia which from their point of view are inseparably connected with the U.S.: Fastfood (correct Russian version фастфуд – 1, Simpsons (1), Hot dog (correct Russian version хот-дог – 1, variation ход-дог – 1).

The collected data can be classified into the following product categories:

· electronics – 19 brand names, 100 references: Apple (56), Microsoft (8), iPhone (8), Windows (5), Tefal (3), Nokia (3), Samsung (2), Intel (2), Blackberry (2), AMD (2), IBM (1), NHT (1), LG (1), Bosch (1), iPad (1), Android (1), iOS (1), Fly (1), Kindle (1);

· food – 9 brand names, 60 references: Coca-Cola (41), Pepsi (9), Lipton (3), Lay's (2), Jack Daniel's (1), Bud (1), Happy Meal (1), Pringles (1), Mars (1);

· auto – 17 brand names, 59 references: Ford (16), Chevrolet (14), Cadillac (8), Hummer (4), Shelby (3), GMC (2), Jeep (2), Porsche (1), Opel (1), Range Rover (1), Chrysler (1), Buick (1), Mercedes (1), Dodge (1), Pontiac (1), Fox Racing (1), Rock Shox (1);

· foodservice companies – 5 brand names, 35 references: McDonald’s (26), KFC (4), Starbucks (2), Subway (2), Burger King (1);

· sporting goods – 3 brand names, 31 references: Nike (18), Adidas (11), Reebok (2);

· mass media – 13 brand names, 22 references: Disney (5), 20th Century Fox (4), Playboy (2), Pixar (2), NY Times (1), The Times (1), Paramount Pictures (1), New Line Cinema (1), Skyline Pictures (1), Universal Pictures (1), Relativity Media (1), Miramax films (1), Columbia pictures (1);

· clothes – 11 brand names, 19 references: Levi's (6), New Yorker (2), GAP (2), Timberland (2), Lee Cooper (1), Collins (1), Guess (1), clothes Marlboro (1), H&M (1), Converse (1), Adio (1);

· fashion – 6 brand names, 8 references: Calvin Clein (3), Dolce&Gabbana (1), Vogue (1), Marc Jacobs (1), Lacoste (1), Michael Kors (1);

· beauty products – 4 brand names, 8 references: Maybelline (3), Procter & Gamble (2), Axe (2), Kiko (1);

· tobacco products – 3 brand names, 6 references: Winston (3), Marlboro (2), Lucky Strike (1);

· oil products – 1 brand name, 4 references: Zic;

· Internet – 2 brand names, 3 references: Facebook (2), eBay (1);

· perfumes – 1 brand name, 2 references: perfume Chanel (2);

· watches – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Casio (1).

The analysis of the brands quantity and the number of their mentions reveals which product categories present the United States in the respondents' cultural representation of the world.

Categories of goods in order of brand names number decreasing: electronics (19), auto (17), mass media (13), clothes (11), food (9), fashion (6), foodservice companies (5), beauty products (4), sporting goods (3), tobacco products (3), oil products (1), Internet (2), perfumes(1), watches (1).

Categories of goods in order of references decreasing: electronics (100), food (60), auto (59), foodservice companies (35), sporting goods (31), mass media (22), clothes (19), fashion (8), beauty products (8), tobacco products (6), oil products (4), Internet (3), perfumes (2), watches (1).

Consequently, the core brand categories related to the U.S. according to the recipients' point of view are the following:

· electronics (computer hardware, software, components, cell phones, home appliances);

· food (food, beverages, alcoholic drinks);

· auto (cars, spare parts);

· foodservice companies;

· sporting goods (clothing, footwear, equipment);

· mass media (newspapers, magazines, film companies, characters);

· clothes.

Peripheral brand categories:

· fashion (fashion houses: clothing, footwear, perfumes, accessories);

· beauty products (make-up, beauty treatment);

· tobacco products;

· oil products;

· Internet;

· perfumes;

· watches.

GERMANY

The survey contains 53 mentions of 268 brands which, according to the respondents, are related to Germany.

Due to the complicated spelling and the fact that German language is less widespread in the world than English, the respondents had often faced difficulties writing brand names: a tendency to use English spelling increased the number of incorrectly reproduced brand names.

Brand name BMW is the most frequent not only in the material related to Germany, but also in the whole survey 59 out of 66 respondents spelled the name of the car brand correctly in German, and 3 respondents – in Russian (БМВ). Phenomenon of dissimilation can be observed in two attempts of spelling German: letter "w" had been substituted with letter "v": (BMV). 3 more answers contained a combination of two languages: BMB. One respondent drew brand's logo instead of the brand name.

The next most popular brand is Mercedes (32). It was represented correctly 5 times in German (Mercedes – 4, Mercedes-benz – 1), and 17 times in Russian (Мерседес). One respondent drew brand's logo , 9 substituted letter "c" with the letter "s" (Mersedes – 8, Mersedes-benz – 1).

Brand of clothes and sporting goods Adidas enters the group of the most popular brands which otherwise consists of the names of cars almost entirely. 15 out of 22 references are correct in English and 3 in Russian (Адидас), the name had been misspelled 4 times: Addidas - 3 Адудас - 1.

Brands Audi (19) and Opel (16) were represented correctly both in German (Audi – 15, Opel – 13) and in Russian (Ауди – 4, Опель –3).

Popular brand Volkswagen appeared to be the most difficult for all the 13 respondents to spell. It had been written correctly only once in German and once in Russian (Фольксваген). Russian-speaking participants of the experiment had problems differentiating usage of letters "w" and "v" in German: Valkswagen (1), Wolkswagen (3), Wolksvagen (1). Furthermore, the phenomenon of dissimilation can be witnessed in Russian equivalents of the brand name: Фольцваген (4), Фольфсваген (1), Вольсфаген (1).

When writing the names of the following two brands in the survey, participants had faced identical difficulties. Out of 12 mentions of the brand Bosch 7 (6 in German, 1 in Russian – Бош) and out of 8 mentions of the brand Porsche only 3 in the German had been reproduced correctly. The rest of the respondents faced the problem of choosing a combination of letters to describe the sound [ш]. They proposed more familiar English combination "sh" as a variant (Bosh – 5, Porshe – 3), and even "ch" (Porche – 1, Porch – 1).

Brand Nike was referred to 6 times, and brand Nokia – 3 times. They were written correctly.

The following brands were accurately represented in German and Russian as well: Volvo – 3, Вольво – 2 (total: 5); Ford – 2, Форд – 2 (total: 4); Henkel – 3, Хенкель – 1 (total: 4); Armani - 1, Армани – 2 (total: 3).

Two respondents pointed out brand Thomas – 1, Томас – 1 (2) correctly. One person mentioned a part of an advertising slogan instead of the brand name: Made in Germany!

The presence of the name of Russian oil producing company Лукойл (Lukoil) in the list of German brands was unexpected (4).

None of the two mentions of French brand Lacoste was written correctly (Lacost, Лакоста).

Brand names Betty Barclay, Fa, Quelle, and Avon were introduced in the survey 2 times each with a correct spelling.

While providing brand names assosicated with Germany, 2 respondents mentioned "beer Kozel", which is likely to mean Czech brand Velkopopovický Kozel.

The following 3 brand names were mentioned 2 times each, correctly (Kaiser, Siemens, Nissan) and incorrectly (Kaicer, Simens, Nisan).

The spelling of Liebherr also appeared to be difficult for the participants of the experiment to spell (Libher – 2).

The following 15 brands were mentioned by respondents 1 time each and reproduced without mistakes in the original language (English, German, Dutch): AMG, Hugo Boss, Brauberg, Burda, Mary Kay, Nivea, ECCO, Lerros, Puma, Nike, Reebok, Lufthansa, Pfaff, Braun, Uragan.

Several brands are represented by inaccurate versions of Russian equivalents. Hoegaarden: correct version – Хугарден, whereas the version mentioned by the respondents – Хью Гарден (2); Raiffeisen bank: correct version – Райффайзен банк, mentioned version – Райфайзен банк (1), Löwenbräu: correct version – Лёвенброй, mentioned version – Лёвэнбрау (1); Guinness: correct version – Гиннесс, mentioned version – Гиннес (1), Heinz: correct version – Хайнц, mentioned version – Хаинс (1); Ikarus: correct version – Икарус, mentioned version – Екарусы (1).

The following brands were introduced once in correct Russian: Зингер (Zinger), Ремингтон (Remington), Гербер (Gerber), Томсон (Thomson), Витек (Vitek), Альштайнер (Altsсhteiner), whereas brand name Киндер (Kinder Chocolate) was mentioned twice.

The collected data can be classified into the following product categories:

· auto – 10 brand names, 166 references: BMW (66), Mercedes (32), Audi (19), Opel (16), Volkswagen (13), Porsche (8), Volvo (5), Ford (4), Nissan (2), AMG (1);

· electronics – 11 brand names, 28 references: Bosch (12), Nokia (3), Thomas (2), Kaiser(2), Liebherr (2), Siemens (2), Thomson (1), Braun (1), Vitek (1), Uragan (1), Remington (1);

· beauty products – 6 brand names, 12 references: Henkel (4), Fa (2), Avon (2), Quelle (2), Mary Kay (1), Nivea (1);

· food – 8 brand names, 11 references: beer Kozel (2), Hoegaarden (2), Kinder Chocolate (2), Löwenbräu (1), Altshteiner (1), Guinness (1), Gerber (1), Heinz (1);

· sporting goods – 4 brand names, 30 references: Adidas (22), Nike (6), Puma (1), Reebok (1);

· clothes – 3 brand names, 4 references: Betty Barclay (2), Burda (1), Leross (1);

· fashion – 3 brand names, 6 references: Armani (3), Lacoste (2), Hugo Boss (1);

· sewing machines – 2 brand names, 2 references: Pfaff, Zinger;

· transport – 2 brand names, 2 references: Lufthansa, Ikarus;

· oil products – 1 brand name, 4 references: Lukoil;

· banks – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Raiffeisen bank;

· office supplies – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Brauberg;

· footwear – 1 brand name, 1 reference: ECCO.

The analysis of the brands quantity and the number of their mentions reveals which product categories present Germany in the respondents' cultural representation of the world.

Categories of goods in order of brand names number decreasing: auto (10), electronics (11), beauty products (6), food (8), sporting goods (4), clothes (3), fashion (3), sewing machines (2), transport (2), oil products (1), banks (1), office supplies (1), footwear (1).

Categories of goods in order of references decreasing: auto (166), sporting goods (30), electronics (28), beauty products (12), food (11), clothes (4), fashion (6), oil products (4), sewing machines (2), transport (2), banks (1), office supplies (1), footwear (1).

Consequently, the core brand categories related to Germany according to the recipients' point of view are the following:

· auto (cars, spare parts);

· sporting goods (clothing, footwear, equipment);

· electronics (computer hardware, software, components, cell phones, home appliances);

Peripheral brand categories:

· beauty products (make-up, beauty treatment);

· food (food, beverages, alcoholic drinks);

· clothes;

· fashion (fashion houses: clothing, footwear, perfumes, accessories);

· foodservice companies;

· oil products;

· accessories;

· sewing machines

· transport

· banks

· office supplies

· footwear.

The gap between the product category auto and the next category is 136. It is remarkable that the majority of informants perceive Germany as the cars manufacturing country and to a lesser extent – as a producer of other commodities. CHINA

The survey contains 136 mentions of 44 brands which, according to the respondents, are associated with China.

It is widely known, that most of the world leading manufacturers place their production in China. China has become the largest supplier of various product categories represented in the world markets. Though the respondents were supposed to write brand names they believed to belong to a specific origin country, many participants of the experiment mentioned China as such a country for vast majority of brands not belonging to it. It is also observed in other countries under consideration but in China this fact concerns most of the brands. That is why we found it important to comment upon the origin of the most brands mentioned in this section.

Brand name Adidas was the most frequent in the responses of the testees – with 16 mentions. Correct name of the brand was represented 9 times in English and 4 times in Russian. There are 3 variations in spelling: Abidas (1), Abibas (1), Adidac (1). The variations Abidas and Abibas may indicate perception of China as a country manufacturing counterfeits of popular brands. Currently, however, there is a factory in China licensed to produce goods of this German brand.

The second most frequent brand in the survey is Lifan which was named 14 times in 2 languages (correct brand name in English was given by 10 respondents and in Russian by 3 with incorrect brand name – Lefan Solano given only once).

Being actually a Korea manufacturer, Samsung was the third brand associated with China – 9 mentions (the brand name is mainly reproduced correctly in English – 7 answers, though there are variations like Sumsungs, Samsind). In our opinion, the number of those who associate the brand with China can be explained by the fact that the company is represented in Russian market by electronics produced in China. The companies of Samsung group actually have factories in China, where household appliances and electronics (televisions, printers, cellular phones, audio devices, laptops, etc.) are produced.

Finnish brand Nokia was mentioned in the replies of seven students, six of them reproduced the brand name in English correctly. The most peculiar graphical representation of this brand is variation Nokiя where we can see coexistence of Cyrillic and Latin alphabets. We believe, the sign "я" in the brand name reflects a rather rare phonetic process of progressive assimilation in Russian, in which the preceding sound likens itself the following one.

The next most frequent (6 responses each) are Chinese brands Chery (accurate version in English – 4 answers, variations – Cherry— 2), BBK (correctly presented in English by all informants) and Fly (correctly presented in English in 5 responses with the variation indicating the product category – phone Fly).

Brand names Huawei (correctly presented in English by all respondents) and Nike (correct brand name in English was given by 3 respondents and in Russian (Найк) by 2) were mentioned in the survey 5 times each. It should be noted that the brand Nike is American but it is represented by goods sewn mostly in China on the Russian market.

Such brands as Doshirak (brand name correctly written in Russian (Доширак), LG (brand represented in English accurately) and HuaRe (only once correctly reproduced in English, variations – Huari — 3) are found in the answers of respondents 4 times each. Nevertheless, only HuaRe is a Chinese brand, since Doshirak is produced in Korea and LG is a South Korean brand.

The following brands were mentioned 3 times each: car brands Toyota (incorrectly spelled by informants in Russian – Тайота), Haima (twice spelled correctly in English and onсe in Russian — Хайма), Hover (correct spelling both in Russian (Ховер) and in English, and a misspelled variation – Hower) and clothing brand Tom Farr (accurately reproduced in English).

In the survey, brands BYD, Geely (in respondents' replies – Geely, Джили), Great Wall, Mango, Rich, Sony, Sony Ericsson, Lenovo, iPhone (variation – Apple iPhone8G) were represented correctly 2 times each. Brand Lacoste is also mentioned by two students, but both times incorrectly – Lacost. It is rather unexpected that above mentioned American brand Coca-Cola in the minds of two our respondents is associated with China, one of the variations written incorrectly (Сока-кола).

According to the survey, names of the following 12 brands were mentioned once each with correct English spelling: Volvo, General Motors, car Nissan, Marmalato, Mr. Lee, Savage, Hello Kitty, O'stin, Prestigio, Acer, Asus, Macy's, only one of these brands is actually Chinese (Mr. Lee).

The following 4 brands were also mentioned in English once each, though respondents found it difficult to write them correctly. Correct brand names are given in brackets: Oggy (Oggi), LoiViton (Louis Vuitton), Peoner (Pioneer), Humer (Hummer).

Some of the respondents were unable to name any Chinese brands. Nevertheless, China in some students’ minds is associated with some particular products and all kinds of bootlegs – всё! (“everything!”) (4); Вся подделка (одежда, телефоны) (“All fakes (clothes, phones)”) (1); все виды подделок (“all kinds of fakes”) (1); суши (“sushi”) (1); машины (“cars”) (1); косметика (“beauty-products”) (1); чай (“tea”) (1); китайский чай (“Chinese tea”) (1); одежда (“clothes”) (1); шелк (“silk”) (3). Some responses of the informants indicate that everything can be made in China: Может сделать все, все бренды (“Can produce everything, all the brands”) (1); производит все бренды (“produces all brands”) (1); Все! Одежда, продовольственные товары (“Everything! Clothes, food”) (1).

Collected data can be classified by the following product categories: electronics, auto, clothes, sporting goods, food, foodservice companies, Internet, fashion as follows:

· electronics – 16 brand names (ten of which are not Chinese), 53 references: Samsung (9), Nokia (7), Fly (6), BBK (6), Huawei (5), LG (4), Huare (4), Lenovo (2), Sony (2), Sony Ericsson (2), iPhone (2), Pioneer (1), Prestigio (1), Acer (1), Asus (1); )

· auto – 12 brand names (only 7 of which are Chinese), 39 references: Lifan (14), Chery (6) Toyota (3), Haima (3), Hover (3), BYD (2), Geely (2), Great Wall (2), Hummer (1), Volvo (1), General Motors (1), автомобиль Nissan (1). The second place of this product category in the answers of the respondents reflects the fact that Chinese cars in the medium price range are gradually becoming famous in Russia. In recent years, Chinese automobile manufacturing companies have begun to introduce new brands and models to develop the car market of our country.

· clothes – 8 brand names, 12 references: Tom Farr (3), Mango (2), Lacoste (2), Oggi (1), Savage (1), O’stin (1), Hello Kitty (1), Marmalato (1). It should be noted that none of the brands in this category is Chinese.

· sporting goods – 2 brand names, 21 references: Adidas (16), Nike (5);

· food – 3 brand names, 8 references: Doshirak (4), Coca-Cola (2), Rich (2);

· foodservice companies – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Mr. Lee;

· fashion – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Louis Vuitton;

· Internet – 1 brand name, 1 reference: Macy’s.

The analysis of the number of brands and their references reveals what product categories are associated with China in the respondents' cultural representation of the world.

Categories of goods in order of brand names number decreasing: electronics (16), auto (12), clothes (8), food (3), sporting goods (2), foodservice companies (1), Internet (1), fashion (1).

Categories of goods in order of references decreasing: electronics (53), auto (39), sporting goods (21), clothes (12), food (8), foodservice companies (1), Internet (1), fashion (1).

It should be noted that the answers of 18 students do not have any brand names.

Consequently, core brand categories related to China according to the recipients' point of view are the following:

• electronics (computer hardware, software, components, cell phones, home appliances, video recorders, GPS navigation devices, peripherals, etc.);

• auto (cars, spare parts);

• sporting goods (clothing, footwear, equipment).

Peripheral brand categories:

• clothes;

• food (food, beverages);

• foodservice companies;

• Internet;

• fashion (fashion houses: clothing, footwear, perfumes, accessories).

The number of responses (brands) as well as the total number of mentions for each brand obtained in the material collected on the countries under consideration is presented in the summary table.

	Brand name	USA	Germany	China	Total
1.	BMW		66		66
2.	Apple	56			56
3.	Adidas	11	22	16	49
4.	Coca-Cola	41		2	43
5.	Mercedes	1	32		33
6.	Nike	18	6	5	29
7.	McDonald’s	26			26
8.	Ford	16	4		20
9.	Audi		19		19
10.	Opel	1	16		17
11.	Chevrolet	14			14
12.	Lifan			14	14
13.	Nokia	3	3	7	13
14.	Bosch	1	12		13
15.	Volkswagen		13		13
16.	Samsung	2		9	11
17.	iPhone	8		2	10
18.	Pepsi	9			9
19.	Porsche	1	8		9
20.	Cadillac	8			8
21.	Microsoft	8			8
22.	Fly	1		6	7
23.	Levi’s	6			6
24.	Volvo		5	1	6
25.	BBK			6	6
26.	Chery			6	6
27.	Disney	5			5
28.	Windows	5			5
29.	Hummer	4		1	5
30.	Lacoste	1	2	2	5
31.	LG	1		4	5
32.	Huawei			5	5
33.	20th Century Fox	4			4
34.	KFC	4			4
35.	Zic	4			4
36.	Henkel		4		4
37.	Lukoil		4		4
38.	Doshirak			4	4
39.	HuaRe			4	4
40.	Calvin Klein	3			3
41.	Lipton	3			3
42.	Maybelline	3			3
43.	Shelby	3			3
44.	Tefal	3			3
45.	Winston	3			3
46.	Reebok	2	1		3
47.	GMC	2		1	3
48.	Armani		3		3
49.	Nissan		2	1	3
50.	Thomas		2		3
51.	Haima			3	3
52.	Hover			3	3
53.	Tom Farr			3	3
54.	Toyota			3	3
55.	AMD	2			2
56.	Axe	2			2
57.	Blackberry	2			2
58.	Chanel	2			2
59.	Facebook	2			2
60.	GAP	2			2
61.	Intel	2			2
62.	Jeep	2			2
63.	Lay’s	2			2
64.	Marlboro	2			2
65.	New Yorker	2			2
66.	Pixar	2			2
67.	Playboy	2			2
68.	Procter & Gamble	2			2
69.	Starbucks	2			2
70.	Subway	2			2
71.	Timberland	2			2
72.	Avon		2		2
73.	Betty Barclay		2		2
74.	Fa		2		2
75.	Hoegaarden		2		2
76.	Kaiser		2		2
77.	Kinder Chocolate		2		2
78.	Liebherr		2		2
79.	Quelle		2		2
80.	Siemens		2		2
81.	Velkopopovický Kozel		2		2
82.	BYD			2	2
83.	Geely			2	2
84.	Great Wall			2	2
85.	Lenovo			2	2
86.	Mango			2	2
87.	Rich			2	2
88.	Sony			2	2
89.	Sony Ericsson			2	2
90.	Adio	1			1
91.	Android	1			1
92.	Bud	1			1
93.	Buiсk	1			1
94.	Burger King	1			1
95.	Casio	1			1
96.	Chrysler	1			1
97.	Collins	1			1
98.	Columbia pictures	1			1
99.	Converse	1			1
100.	Dodge	1			1
101.	Dolce&Gabbana	1			1
102.	Ebay	1			1
103.	Fox Racing	1			1
104.	Guess	1			1
105.	H&M	1			1
106.	Happy Meal	1			1
107.	IBM	1			1
108.	iOS	1			1
109.	Ipad	1			1
110.	Jack Daniel's	1			1
111.	Kiko	1			1
112.	Kindle	1			1
113.	Lee Cooper	1			1
114.	Lucky Strike	1			1
115.	Marc Jacobs	1			1
116.	Mars	1			1
117.	Michael Kors	1			1
118.	Miramax films	1			1
119.	New Line Cinema	1			1
120.	NHT	1			1
121.	NY Times	1			1
122.	Paramount Pictures	1			1
123.	Pontiac	1			1
124.	Pringles	1			1
125.	Range Rover	1			1
126.	Relativity Media	1			1
127.	Rock Shox	1			1
128.	Skyline Pictures	1			1
129.	The Times	1			1
130.	Universal Pictures	1			1
131.	Vogue	1			1
132.	одежда Marlboro	1			1
133.	Altshteiner		1		1
134.	AMG		1		1
135.	Brauberg		1		1
136.	Braun		1		1
137.	Burda		1		1
138.	ECCO		1		1
139.	Gerber		1		1
140.	Guinness		1		1
141.	Heinz		1		1
142.	Hugo Boss		1		1
143.	Ikarus		1		1
144.	Lerros		1		1
145.	Löwenbräu		1		1
146.	Lufthansa		1		1
147.	Mary Kay		1		1
148.	Nivea		1		1
149.	Pfaff		1		1
150.	Puma		1		1
151.	Raiffeisen bank		1		1
152.	Remington		1		1
153.	Thomson		1		1
154.	Uragan		1		1
155.	Vitek		1		1
156.	Zinger		1		1
157.	Acer			1	1
158.	Asus			1	1
159.	Hello Kitty			1	1
160.	Louis Vuitton			1	1
161.	Macy’s			1	1
162.	Marmalato			1	1
163.	Mr. Lee			1	1
164.	O’stin			1	1
165.	Oggi			1	1
166.	Pioneer			1	1
167.	Prestigio			1	1
168.	Savage			1	1

According to the table two dominating brands are associated with a single country each: BMW (Germany – 66), Apple (USA – 56). The next is brand name Adidas associated in the opinion of the respondents with all three countries under consideration (out of total 49 it had been related to the USA 11 times, Germany – 22, China – 16). Other names of the leading ten popular brands are Coca-Cola (out of total 43: USA – 41, China – 2), Mercedes (out of 33: Germany – 32, USA – 1), Nike (out of 29: USA – 18, Germany – 6, China – 5 ), McDonald’s (USA – 26), Ford (out of 17: USA – 13, Germany – 4), Audi (Germany – 19), Opel (out of 17: USA – 1, Germany – 16).

It also should be noted that four brands were mentioned in relation to all three countries: sporting goods brands Adidas and Nike (out of 29: USA – 18, Germany – 6, China – 5), cell phones brand Nokia (out of 13: USA – 3, Germany – 3, China – 7), fashion brand Lacoste (out of 5: USA – 1, Germany – 2, China – 2).

Due to the rapid technological development it is impossible to imagine modern society without various appliances, computers (both hardware and software), cell phones, GPRS navigators, etc. The number of participants' responses to the countries under consideration (USA, Germany, China) proves it by bringing the product category electronics to the first place. Cars are another important feature of modern life, with category auto being the second in the combined analysis of product categories. The category sporting goods (clothing, shoes, and accessories) ranks next. Other categories in the analysis of these countries are on the periphery of the cultural representation of the world illustrated by brands. However, it should be taken into account that after examining all the countries within the scope of the experiment, this tendency may change.

This article covers only a few major trends of the linguistic component of the study: because of the wide spread of English the respondents often tried to write German, French, and Chinese brands by means of English spelling; choosing Russian equivalents of foreign brand names they used transliteration, while the official name in Russian is formed with the help of transcription; since there is no apostrophe in Russian language, students often omitted them in English spelling of brands names; participants occasionally mixed Latin and Cyrillic characters in some brand names, etc.

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