The strategy of cultural export and cultural powerhouse China cannot be separated from the inheritance and innovative research of traditional Chinese cultural symbols. In recent years, China has seen several design trends based on traditional Chinese culture, which has attracted scholars to study the cultural phenomena behind these trends. Method: Using the visual literature analysis software CiteSpace, based on the Chinese research literature on traditional Chinese cultural symbols collected in the CNKI online edition, the spatial and temporal distribution of keywords in the current research on traditional Chinese cultural symbols, the co-occurrence and mutation of research institutions, and the research content hotspots of authors were mapped and analyzed to sort out the research context. Conclusion: At present, there are many research topics on traditional Chinese cultural symbols in China. In recent years, the main research topics have focused on 1. Design application research, 2. Integration research with modern cultural symbols, 3. Communication narrative research, and 4. Symbol theory research. Some scholars have combined these topics with other disciplines such as design, communication, and psychology to conduct research. The research results have a certain depth, but there are few relevant partnerships between research scholars and institutions, which needs to be strengthened.