Critical toponymy in the Chinese context: theoretical dialogues with Western scholarship and global implications

Toponyms are potent signifiers of cultural identity and sites of ongoing socio-political negotiation. Advancing beyond Eurocentric perspectives prevalent in critical toponymic studies, this article examines the emergence of a distinctive body of scholarship shaped by the Chinese socialist context. It traces an evolution from institutional adaptation toward approaches that prioritize socialist embeddedness, cultural rootedness, and people-oriented values. Rather than positing a monolithic Chinese paradigm in opposition to a homogenized Western tradition, the article adopts a dialogical approach that highlights both convergences and divergences across different scholarly contexts. By engaging with Marxist geography alongside Chinese traditional ethics, the framework presented here navigates tensions between development and preservation, as well as market forces and cultural continuity. It explores a tripartite governance approach involving government, market, and public stakeholders, supported by digital innovations such as a toponymic cultural gene bank. This Chinese experience provides a non-Western reference point for international scholarship, assisting post-colonial communities and tourism-dependent economies in reclaiming spatial narratives and negotiating cultural heritage with sustainable growth. Ultimately, it enriches global discussions on spatial justice and the cultural politics of place naming.