Analysis Of the Meanings of Inscriptions on Pick-Up Trucks at Lonrae Fish Auction

Abstract

This study analyzes the meanings and linguistic characteristics of inscriptions displayed on pick-up trucks at the Lonrae Fish Auction, Bone, South Sulawesi. A descriptive qualitative design was employed. The dataset consisted of 21 inscriptions documented during fieldwork in June–August 2024; these 21 texts represent the principal inscriptions selected from the field documentation because they were clearly visible, readable, and relevant to the research questions. Data were collected through observation, documentation, and semi-structured interviews with two informants: Supriadi, a pick-up truck owner, and Akbar, a member of the local community. The primary analytical framework was semiotics, using Saussure’s signifier–signified relation and Peirce’s representamen–object–interpretant model. Sociolinguistic and pragmatic perspectives were used as supporting lenses to explain language choice, identity, and communicative function. The findings show that the inscriptions form a mobile multilingual semiotic landscape. They communicate religious and moral reminders, motivation and work ethic, personal and family identity, business and community affiliation, humor, and Bugis cultural values. Linguistically, the data comprise Indonesian, Arabic, Bugis, mixed Indonesian-English forms, and names, acronyms, and numerical identities. Nominal and elliptical forms are common, while longer inscriptions employ simple or multi-clause structures. Pragmatically, the inscriptions mainly function as expressive, directive, and representative acts. Interview evidence confirms that at least some meanings, particularly religious and Bugis cultural meanings, correspond to the owners’ or community members’ understandings. The study argues that the pick-up trucks operate as mobile public texts through which livelihood, religion, kinship, group affiliation, and coastal-community identity are made visible.