English in authoritative COVID-19 public health signage in South Korea: multilingual and monolingual practices for domestic and foreign audiences

Abstract The beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic quickly led to the introduction of COVID-19 public health signage in many locations around the world. However, the language practices of these signs remain under-examined even years after the emergence of COVID-19. This study examines 39 unique authoritative COVID-19 public health signs collected in South Korea which contain English. We find that the use of English within signage intended for a domestic Korean audience differs radically from the use of English intended for a foreign audience within Korea. Within signage intended for a Korean audience, we find that English can convey information within the English text itself, can serve a design purpose reinforcing the meaning of a sign, and be a means of Korean-English punning. Within signage intended for a foreign audience, English was used alongside Chinese and Japanese as part of a general multilingual communication strategy, while widely differing language practices were used within certain ‘foreign places’ within Korea. We also identify ‘pseudo-bilingual signage’ that can limit the effectiveness of public health signage, and highlight the potential of multilingual public health communication for purportedly monolingual majority communities. This study should be of interest to scholars of world Englishes and public-health communication.