Signs of the Times - February 2013 - (Page 66)
ﺱﻝﺏﺍﻥ ﻕﻱﺭﻁ םכש ךרד
Word on the
Street Signs
Israeli street-sign regulations make
U.S. sign codes appear tame.
By Deborah Rubin Fields
Here’s purpose of street signs?
a question: What is the
primary
Are they meant to clarify? Most
people would probably say “yes”.
Most people believe road signs
should help people navigate. In
Israel, some people take a different
view.
Israeli signage, a complex subject,
raises numerous questions. First,
who should determine the copy?
Should politicians, academicians,
civil engineers or signpainters
decide? Moreover, what languages
should appear? Should Hebrew
Photo by Ariel Fields
and Arabic – both of which have
legal standing as official languages
– be used? Should English also be
used to assist the many tourists?
Should the English be a translation
or just a transliteration of the Hebrew
and/or the Arabic? What if a place
is known by both Hebrew and
Arabic names; should signs reflect
both names?
Let’s ponder just one example:
In Jerusalem, one thoroughfare is
known to Hebrew speakers as
Shechem Road ( )םכש ךרדand to
Arabic speakers as Nablus Road
66 SIGNS OF THE TIMES / FEBRUARY 2013 / www.signweb.com
( .)ﺱﻝﺏﺍﻥ ﻕﻱﺭﻁShould the English
part of the sign state Nablus Road
(as posted on the English website
of the Consulate General of the
United States, Jerusalem), or should
it read Shechem (the location’s
Biblical name) Road, or even Derech
Shechem (as printed on at least one
local, English-language hotel map)?
Furthermore, how accurate should
the English translations be? Should
qualified translators be hired to
properly spell the translations from
the Hebrew and Arabic, or can
municipal, sign-department personnel rely on electronic translators/
dictionaries?
Amazingly, when posted in
English, Israeli signs sometimes
display “made-up” words. Here is
one example. Where highways are
under construction (where in Israel
aren’t they?), yellow signs often
caution in English: “Trucks slowing
from left.”
How did all this multi-lingual
mess begin? In 1922, the League of
Nations approved the British Mandate
for Palestine. This included Article
22, which stated: “English, Arabic
and Hebrew shall be the official
languages of Palestine. Any statement or inscription in Arabic on
stamps or money in Palestine shall
be repeated in Hebrew and any
http://www.signweb.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Signs of the Times - February 2013
Signs of the Times - February 2013
Contents
ST Update
Technology Update
Vinyl Apps
Strictly Electric
LED Update
Software Update
Technology Review
Technology Review
Sign Museum News
New Products
Dressed to Impress
Uniqlo’s In-store Digital Signage
Pursuing a Different Rout
Word on the Street Signs
Industry News
Advertising Index
Editorially Speaking
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