"Bad" words

As part of their broad language policing, PRC authorities are cracking down on inappropriate monikers:

"No More ‘SissyGuy’ or ‘Douchebag1990’: Weibo Bans Usernames Containing ‘Bad’ Words:

Weibo users can clean up their usernames before December 8", Manye Koetse, What's on Weibo (12/1/21)

Weibo, which is China's version of Twitter, has a huge following and enormous influence, but, like everything on the Chinese internet, it is strictly censored and harshly controlled.  Now, in line with the recent announcement of the latest drastic language regulations, Weibo users must junk their naughty names.

On December 1st, Weibo administrators announced that Weibo users can no longer have vulgar/slang terms in their usernames, or any other words that are deemed offensive. Users have until December 8 to change their potentially offensive username. If they continue to use a ‘vulgar’ nickname on the platform, their account could be (temporarily) suspended.

Some of the terms that will no longer be allowed include:

瘪三 Biēsān: slang word to refer to someone as a bum, like a broke-ass low-life 二货 Èrhuò: when used as slang, could be translated as ‘douchebag’ 娘炮 Niángpào: slang word that could be translated as ‘sissy’ SB: online slang used to curse people, with SB being the acronym of the Chinese “Shǎ bī (傻逼) = stupid C-word

The new Weibo regulations are part of the 2021 ‘Qinglang’ campaign (清朗行动) to ‘clean up’ the internet and eliminate harmful content. By now, the announcement has gone viral on Weibo, where one hashtag dedicated to the topic (#微博昵称不得含娘炮等词汇#) received over 110 million views on Wednesday. Many Weibo users are confused about the new rules. “I never knew ‘Niángpào‘ was considered a vulgar word,” one user commented, while another person nicknamed ‘Farting Picture’ wondered: “Is 'fart' still okay though?”

…

With the PRC internet noose ever tightening, it is increasingly hard to have fun on it any longer.

 

Selected readings

• "Girlie men in the PRC" (9/5/21) — niángpào 娘炮
• "Girlie men in the PRC, part 2" (9/6/21)
• "Victor Mair: Eye-roll of the century", jichang lulu (3/20/18) — for "shǎbī 傻逼"
• "Awesome sushi barbecue restaurant" (8/8/19) — for niúbī 牛B / 牛逼
• "T-shirt slogans" (11/7/16)
• "Hemorrhoids outbreak" (9/14/21)
• "The PRC censors its own national anthem" (2/9/20)
• "The letter * has bee* ba**ed in Chi*a" (2/26/18)
• "Bad words on WeChat: go directly to jail" (12/17/17)
• "Censoring 'Occupy' in China" (10/24/11)
• "Using riddles to circumvent censorship in China" (3/6/18)
• "Peppa Pig has been purged" (5/2/18)
• "Censored letter" (12/19/14) — about a nine-year-old boy who suggested that Xi Jinping lose weight
• "Excessive quadrisyllabicism" (2/17/18)
• "Chinese translation app with built-in censorship" (11/29/18)
• "Lepus oryzinus" (2/10/18)
• "Banned in Beijing" (6/4/14)
• "Where's Xi?" (9/11/12)
• "Digraphia and intentional miswriting" (3/12/15)
• "It's not just puns that are being banned in China" (12/7/14)
• "Annals of literary vs. vernacular, part 2" (9/4/16)
• "God use VPN" (12/28/15)
• "Censored belly, Tibetan tattoo" (8/28/17)
• "The face of censorship" (1/11/19)
• "The reality of censorship in the PRC" (10/13/16)
• "Badge of honor: Language Log is blocked in China" (12/26/19) — many more posts could be listed, but this is a good place to stop

[h.t. Don Keyser]