Aim/purpose – Linguistic distance, as a core element of cultural distance, significantly affects bilateral trade flows. Mitigating its adverse impact has become a central concern for both policymakers and scholars. This study examines how linguistic distance influ- ences China’s exports of cultural products and investigates whether overseas Chinese- -language education moderates this relationship. Design/methodology/approach – This paper first examines the impact of linguistic distance on trade in Chinese cultural products using global panel data regression. It then analyzes how overseas Chinese education mitigates the obstructive effect of linguistic distance on trade through a moderation analysis. Findings – This study reveals that although linguistic distance hinders exports, overseas Chinese-language education can effectively mitigate the obstructive effect on trade in cultural products. The heterogeneity analysis further shows that this mitigating effect is more pronounced in non-adjacent countries, Belt and Road countries, and those within the Confucian cultural circle. Finally, the non-core trade in cultural products is more strongly affected by linguistic distance. Research implications/limitations – This study not only provides empirical evidence that may help optimize overseas Chinese education and communicate Chinese cultural narratives more effectively, but also offers insights that could contribute to enhancing competitiveness in the trade of cultural products. However, the data are limited to Chi- na’s cultural trade, and the conclusions should be understood within this context. More- over, the complexity of linguistic factors deserves further study. Originality/value/contribution – This study offers new evidence of how linguistic distance affects China’s exports of cultural products. It further examines the moderating effect of overseas Chinese education and its heterogeneous effects. The findings contrib- ute to our understanding of both the constraints and proactive roles of language factors in the field of cultural exports. Keywords: linguistic distance; overseas Chinese education; core culture; Belt and Road. JEL classification: I2, Z1.
Zhang et al. (Thu,) studied this question.