Linguistic and Philosophical Aspects in the Analysis of City Slogans – An Investigation of the Slogans of Hungary’s Major Cities and the Districts of Its Capital, Budapest

Abstract

Cities and districts can benefit from finding a good slogan and using it consistently. But what makes a good slogan, and more specifically, what makes a good slogan for a city or a district of a city? In the literature review, we sought answers to this question through the examination of various sources.
The empirical part of the research focuses on Hungary, a landlocked country in Central Eastern Europe whose capital is Budapest. We examined the slogans of major cities and the districts of its capital. Among the 47 cities and districts studied, we identified slogans for 39 of them. Seven Budapest districts had no identifiable slogan, and one major city also lacked one.
An interesting, although not surprising, key finding is that district slogans tend to be more administrative in tone, often resembling guiding statements from local government, and are primarily aimed at residents. In contrast, major cities are more likely to use slogans that target tourists. Another key conclusion, with both linguistic and philosophical implications, is that most slogans are not unique, except perhaps for including the name of the city or district itself. In many cases, the slogans could be interchanged, meaning that a particular slogan could just as well belong to another city or district, or be equally meaningless there.