Signs, Myths, and Tourism Identity: A Semiotic Study of the Jordan Tourism Board's Social Media Narratives
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Tourism communication has become the strategic construction of symbolic narratives that influence destination reputation and global perceptions. Yet, in Jordan, there is a gap in research on how the Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) implements semiosis to shape the country's destination image online. This study, therefore, analyzes how JTB employs semiotic strategies to build Jordan's tourism image across Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) platforms. Using Roland Barthes' three-level model of denotation, connotation, and myth, twenty-three posts were examined through a qualitative semiotic framework. The findings show that JTB integrates the following five axes—historical, adventure, therapeutic, religious, and cultural—into a unified narrative of “Jordan: The Kingdom of Transformative Experiences.” Petra and Jerash posts also frame Jordan as the “Living Time Gate,” and desert landscapes project myths of “Enchanted Wilderness,” while wellness content emphasizes the “Healing Oasis”. In addition, there are religious visuals that portray the nation as the Land of Sacred Harmony, and the themes that are promoted in the cultural posts include the Taste of Generosity and the Bohemian Quarter. These myths and symbolic hashtags are supported with the use of visual strategies such as monumental framing, monochromatic photography, and symbolic hashtags and cemented to construct an identity of Jordan as authentic, transformative, and spiritually harmonious. Combining the semiotic analysis with the impression management theory, the study proves the purposefulness of JTB discourse as self-promotion, exemplification, and ingratiation strategies. In theory, it is progressive in the sense that it correlates symbolic construction and strategy purpose, and, in terms of empirical research, this study is among the first semiotic analyses of Arab tourism boards' communication.
Source: Forum for Linguistic Studies
Institutions: Yarmouk University, Zarqa University, Middle East University
Language: English
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4416404271