KAJIAN SEMIOTIK SOSIAL TERHADAP PENAMAAN KULINER UNIK DI BANYUWANGI

Abstract

This study was conducted to examine the naming of unique culinary products in Banyuwangi through a social semiotic perspective. Culinary names are not only used as product labels, but are also shaped as signs that carry cultural meanings, taste associations, local identity, and commercial attraction. The problem discussed in this study concerns the forms of semiotic signs found in unique culinary names and the social functions represented through those names. This research used a descriptive qualitative method with a social semiotic approach. The data consisted of 37 unique culinary names in Banyuwangi, such as Pentol Judes, Bakso Mercon, Bebek Songkem, Mi Gacoan, Es Kecebong, Nasi Tempong, Pecel Pitik, and Botok Tawon. The analysis was carried out by using Charles Sanders Peirce’s theory of icons, indexes, and symbols, and M.A.K. Halliday’s view of language as social semiotics. The findings show that culinary names in Banyuwangi contain iconic, indexical, and symbolic signs. Symbolic signs tend to appear strongly because many names are formed through metaphor, slang, popular culture, and local cultural references. In Halliday’s perspective, the names also perform ideational, interpersonal, and textual functions. Through these functions, culinary naming is used to represent food characteristics, attract consumers, build social interaction, and strengthen Banyuwangi’s cultural identity.

Keywords: social semiotics, culinary naming, Banyuwangi, Peirce, Halliday