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Cultural Categorization of Definitions of Hospitality
Words : A Matter of Definitions
Henrik Vejlgaard, Copenhagen Business Academy, Copenhagen, Denmark
Abstract
Hospitality research is marred by a tendency to use the nouns hospitality and hospitableness as entirely synonymous and perfectly interchangeable. This has led to confusion and misunderstandings when reading the literature and resulted in an atomistic body of literature lacking a unifying conceptual approach. Using different methods, including etymological methods, numerous studies have attempted to define hospitality concepts. This study takes a novel approach to understanding and defining hospitality vocabulary: cultural categorization of the definitions of six hospitality words across three languages (English, German, Danish). The findings show that there is not correspondence between the cultural categorizations of dictionary definitions across languages. A reason for the confusion among hospitality researchers may be that the words have different cultural meanings in different languages. The paper presents definitions and cultural categorizations of six hospitality words. It is suggested that the concept of hosting can nuance hospitality research. Key words : Hospitableness, Hosting, Language use, Behavior, Values Track Global/Societal Track Focus of Paper Theoretical/Academic Kind of submission: Paper
Introduction
There exists a considerable body of research on the topic of hospitality, but, as pointed out by Brotherton, it is “characterized by considerable repetition, circularity of argument, fundamental misunderstandings and misuse of basic terminology and concepts” (Brotherton, 2017). This is reflected in “the ubiquitous tendency for commentators to use the adjective hospitable and the nouns hospitableness and hospitality as entirely synonymous and perfectly interchangeable” (ibid.). As pointed out by Brotherton, the outcome is often confusion when reading the literature, and, a more worrisome outcome from a scientific point of view, “The result has been the development of a rather atomistic body of literature lacking a unifying and solid conceptual anchor that could be used to provide a more universally accepted definition of hospitality and help circumscribe the field in a more logical and defendable manner” (ibid). The misunderstandings and misuse that Brotherton writes about are likely to have different causes. One cause can be disagreement on academic definitions, with the use of a plethora of definitions of hospitality as a consequence. Another cause may be that definitions of hospitality and other often used words in hospitality research are not the same across different languages, and/or that the pragmatic (everyday) use of these “hospitality words” is not the same across different languages. Academic definitions, although supposedly having the same meaning across languages, do not necessarily reflect cultural nuances that are embedded in words and language use.
Numerous studies have attempted to define “hospitality” using different methods. Several of these studies have had a focus on the etymology of the word hospitality (O’Gorman, 2010), as a way to understand the meaning of hospitality. In early hospitality research, there was often references to the linguistic roots of the English word host (Brotherton & Wood, 2000, p. 135), as is also often the case in 21st^ century research (cf. O’Gorman, 2010). While the etymology of key hospitality words is well-known, it appears that a 21st^ century comparison of definitions and cultural meanings of definitions of hospitality words across languages has not been carried out. Culture is notoriously difficult to define (Condon & LaBrack, 2015). In 2006 , Baldwin et al. concluded that at that time there were over 300 academic definitions of culture (Baldwin et al., 2006). Some academics have argued that it is not only difficult to define culture but that it is almost impossible (Edelstein et al., 1989). However, some agreement does exist on what culture is: It is what has been created by human beings (Moore & Lewis, 1952); thus it is not nature. In lieu of a definition, it can be described what culture is about: values, behavior, material elements, and language (Vejlgaard, 2017). These four components are considered cultural categories in this study. The aim of this paper is to bring to light cultural similarities and differences between dictionary definitions of hospitality words across different languages.
Method and Data-gathering
Academic definitions of hospitality words are not necessarily based in actual language use, and the cultural “roots” of academic definitions are likely obscure. Therefore, this paper will analyze definitions of hospitality words based on their dictionary definitions and deduce which cultural category that a definition reflects. It has been pointed out that “Dictionary definitions of terms are, by their very nature, generic in character and thus tend towards the vague. However, there is merit in reflecting upon at least some of these since it permits an appreciation of the parameters of nuance […] placed on definitions of hospitality” (Brotherton & Wood, 2000 , p. 135). Definitions in academic research and in dictionaries differ: In academic research, there is typically one definition of the word: the definition is restrictive. Authoritative dictionaries aim to present all or many meanings of a word, often giving multiple definitions, exhausting all the ways a word can be understood: the definitions are expansive. Authoritative dictionaries can open up to the nuances of words. However, although this study has an expansive approach, it will not quote all dictionary definitions of the words included in the study; only definitions that are relevant to hospitality research will be included. Based on these considerations, this paper will use dictionaries as source material. Dictionaries represent document data, as do other types of books and also, for instance, charts, newspapers, institutional reports, survey data, and various public records (Bowen, 2009). However, a dictionary is not just a dictionary; dictionaries have different qualities and different structures and content. In this study, the dictionaries that will be used must have comprehensive definitions. To be authoritative in this study, the dictionaries must be published in book form in a dictionary format or, if in a digital format, the website content must be published by a dictionary brand or by an official government body. The hospitality words to be included in the semantic analysis will be English words, as English is the lingua franca of international hospitality research. Six English hospitality words have been selected to be categorized. These six words represent five frequently words in English-language hospitality studies in the 21st^ century: “Host” and “guest” are obvious candidates. Three other words, “hospitality”, “hospitableness”, and “hospitable”, were highlighted by Brotherton (2017) as the cause of confusion and misrepresentation. A sixth word, hosting, is less frequently used than the other five words. However, it appears to be linked to hospitableness: In his research, Blain has called hospitableness “the psychology of hosting” (Blain, 2012, p. 30), indicating that hosting is a different phenomenon than hospitableness. Therefore, hosting is found to be a relevant word to include in the study.
Host (noun)
- Gastgeber (LHE).
- Gastwirt (LHE).
- Guest giver.
- Guest host (host of the guest).
- Someone who invites guests; historically: host at an inn; inn keeper [1].
- Host at hotels and restaurants [2]. 1: BEHAVIOR 2: PROFESSION Hospitality (noun) 1 Hospitaliät (D).
- Gastfreundschaft (LHE).
- Gastlichkeit (LHE).
- Hospitality.
- Guest friendship.
- Guest-attentiveness.
- Friendly reception of guests, especially at lodging/shelters and similar places [1]. 2a. Friendly reception of guests, especially at lodging/shelters and similar places [1]. 2b. Friendly behavior towards guests [1].
- Making guests feel comfortable [1]. 1 : BEHAVIOR Hospitable (adjective)
- Gastfreundlich (LHE).
- Gastlich (LHE).
- Guest friendly.
- Guest-attentive.
- Being friendly to guests[1].
- The behavior that make a guest feel comfortable[2]. 1: VALUE 2: BEHAVIOR Hospitable- ness (noun)
- Gastlichkeit (LHE).
- Guest-attentiveness. 1. Making guests feel comfortable [1].
- Dervived from “gastlich” [2]. 1: VALUE (2: BEHAVIOR) Hosting (gerund or transitive verb) n/a Guest 1. Gast (LHE). 1. Guest. 1. A person who is invited for socializing and/or temporary accommodation[1]. 1: BEHAVOR/ROLE Table 3 lists the six English hospitality words and gives the Danish translation of the six words. It also gives a literal translation of the Danish words into English and an English translation of the Danish definition of the Danish word. Table 3. Six English hospitality words and the Danish translation and definition. English word/ Word type Danish Translation Literal translation of Danish base word Dictionary definition (translated from Danish) Cultural category or sub- category host (noun)
- vært (SDK1).
- gæstgiver (SDK2).
- host.
- guest giver.
- Person who offers invited guests something to eat or drink or take care of their needs in other ways[1].
- Innkeeper [2]. 1: BEHAVIOR 2: PROFESSION Hospitality (noun)
- gæstfrihed (SDK3).
- gæstgiveri (SDK4).
- guest freedom.
- guest giving.
- Hospitable attitude [1] or treatment [2].
- Place that offers travelers food, drink and sleeping accommodation [3]. 1 : VALUE 2 : BEHAVIOR 3 : PLACE Place is a physical element. Hospitable 1. gæstfri (SDK3). 1. guest free. 1a. Someone who likes to receive guests and strangers, and who are welcoming and generous to them[1]. 1b. Accommodating and inviting to visitors [2]. 1 : VALUE 2 : BEHAVIOR
Hospitable- ness
- gæstfrihed (SDK3).
- guest freedom. 1. Hospitable attitude [1] or treatment [2]. 1 : VALUE In social psychology, value and attitude are closely related (Vaughan & Hogg, 1998, p. 95). 2 : BEHAVIOR Hosting 1. værtskab (SDK5). 1. host-ship. 1. The act of being host[1]. 1: BEHAVIOR Guest (noun)
- gæst (SDK6). 1. guest. 1. Person who visits another person’s home, for instance, to participate in a party or other occasion, unannounced or by invitation [1].
- Customer in a restaurant or hotel or travel agency etc.[2]. 1: BEHAVIOR 2: ROLE
Analysis
Table 4 is a summation of the categorization of the words into psychological and cultural categories, as these categories were determined in Tables 1, 2, and 3. Table 4. Summation of categorizations in Tables 1, 2 and 3. Language Word
ENGLISH
Cultural Category
GERMAN
Cultural Category
DANISH
Cultural Category Host BEHAVIOR PROFESSION BEHAVIOR PROFESSION BEHAVIOR PROFESSION Hospitality PERSONALITY BEHAVIOR BEHAVIOR VALUE BEHAVIOR PLACE Hospitableness PERSONALITY VALUE (^) VALUE BEHAVIOR VALUE BEHAVIOR Hosting n/a^ n/a^ BEHAVIOR Guest BEHAVIOR ROLE BEHAVIOR ROLE BEHAVIOR ROLE As per Table 4, host and guest are understood in the same way across all the three languages: Both are about behavior; behavior can be a role, which is a specific type of behavior, namely a relatively standardized social position (Jary & Jary, 2004, p. 524). Guest is a role a person can have. The behavior that describes host also reflect that of a role. This means that host can be a profession (an occupation) and a role that a person can have, regardless of job title. With respect to hospitality, there are different ways of understanding this word, not only across the three languages, but in English and Danish also within the language. In English, hospitality can be understood in two different ways: as an aspect of personality or as behavior. In Danish, the two Danish equivalents of hospitality can be understood in three different ways: as a value, behavior, or a place. The German equivalent is solely about behavior. Thus, the one cultural category that is the same across all three languages is behavior. Hospitableness can be understood in two different ways in all three languages; however, the categories are not the same categories across the three languages. In English, hospitableness is about personality and a value. In
Guest (noun) Someone for whom a host serves food and drink and/or provides a bed to sleep in. Role
Concluding Comment
Adding cultural categorization to the definitions of hospitality vocabulary can be viewed as a step in reducing the misunderstandings and confusion that Brotherton (2017) described. By applying cultural categorization to the definitions of hospitality words, it becomes clear that the words hospitality and hospitable/hospitableness are not synonymous and cannot be used interchangeably. Cultural categorization of definitions may not only give overall insights about hospitality words. An outcome of this study, is also an academic definition of the word hosting and the suggestion that by adding hosting to the hospitality vocabulary, research can be more precise. With a more precise vocabulary, the risk of misunderstandings and confusion is further reduced. Both hospitality and hosting are about host behavior. However, whereas hospitality is about the treatment of guests in a broad and general way, hosting is about how the host’s treatment of guests is “carried out” at a personal level. When doing research on hosting, that is, on the exercising of the role of host, the focus is likely to be on hosts’ behavior and communication towards guests. In future research, it is also relevant to examine what the difference between the delivering a service and exercising the role of host is, if, indeed, there is a difference.
Sources (Tables 1, 2, 3)
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