The Role of Vernacular and Culture in Place Branding: Insight from A Literature Survey

Abstract

The places where we live in always produce a culture from the existence of the people. The same goes for place branding, which will always find a way to spectacle that culture for the others including the tourists. Place branding includes nations, cities, villages, urban villages, and even abandoned places like slums. However, how we interpret those cultures depends on how we think, understand, believe, and act in those environments. Therefore, there are always differences in how people interpret culture, and within the framework of knowledge, these differences can create tension in the relationship between culture and place branding. This research explores the differences in interpreting the meanings of culture to understand the role of culture in place branding.It uses a literature survey as a research method. Samples of previous research articles using the Scopus-indexed repository database were obtained. 23 selected articles were analyzed using the thematic analysis method employing Atlas-ti software.Findings show that culture has different meanings and roles. Several previous studies indicate some tensions between culture and place branding. This paper proposes propositions relating culture through place branding, including 'culture in-,' 'culture for-,' and 'culture of-' place branding. It presents these findings in a conceptual framework: the role of culture through place branding.