On Nicknames
nova 在这篇随笔中分享了他关于昵称“Nova Noir”的故事和演变过程。起初，他的第一个网络昵称是充满童真但略显搞笑的“爱吃屎的懒羊羊”，随后在火星文学风盛行的时代，他使用了“丗堺”等名字。后来，在接触百度贴吧以及《Minecraft》期间，他选择了“Haunt”作为昵称，这期间的名字更趋向于生僻和个性化。
后来，随着时间的推移和兴趣的变化，在接触《CSGO》后，他选择了“Nova”作为新昵称，这个名字的独特性和"新星"的含义让他深感满意。从2017年开始，他加入了“neo-noir”的后缀，组成了“Nova Noir”，并一直使用至今。
在踏入大学后，nova意识到中文昵称的作用和影响力，于是为自己起了一个中文昵称“黯星座”，希望这个名字能更具辨识度，并能反映出"Nova"和"Noir"的意境。
尽管他已经有了职业和长期使用的昵称，但随着他的兴趣和环境变化，他仍然在考虑更多可能的昵称形式，比如“miu”，以便在不同平台上展现个性和保持独特性。总而言之，nova 的昵称演变之路展现了他个人成长和审美变化，同时也反映出他对昵称独特性和辨识度的追求。
As you can see, my nickname is Nova Noir (or Nova No1R, Nova No1r, and various other variations), but what's the story behind this nickname? What will be the past, present, and future of my online alias?
This article originated from thinking about the online nickname "Lantern" while taking a bath, along with thoughts about his real name, and extrapolating from there (although I have never met "Lantern" in person, but coincidentally heard him giving a reverse fundamentals course to my roommate, and then went to observe and learn from it).
The Beginning
My first contact with the internet began with the QQ number registered by my family. I vividly remember my first nickname, which was carefully decided after discussions with my mother, called "爱吃屎的懒羊羊" ("Lazy Lamb Who Loves Eating Poop"). I admit that this name, even by today's standards, is quite abstract, but for an 8-year-old, it seemed reasonable. CF was the first online game I played, and around third grade, I chose my first nickname, which I still remember as "丗堺" because I also used this name on MCBBS, and it is torture every time I have to enter this name, probably around 2012, a time when my mind was filled with alien symbols.
One memorable signature was: 图坦卡蒙的忧伤，暑假，已逝幻想 ("The Sorrow of King Tutankhamun, Summer Vacation, Vanished Fantasy"), which became a fun activity for me after retrieving my old QQ account a few years later.
However, during this period, nicknames were frequently changed, and I only remember "丗堺" distinctly. Can these nicknames from that period really be considered nicknames?
Tieba Era
While still in elementary school, I discovered Baidu Tieba for browsing things like comic books. Posting was easy back then, as you could directly post content without using Baidu Cloud (although I did save some on Baidu Cloud). During this time, I chose my first non-alien nickname: Haunt, also known as HauntChoc.
I can't recall the origin of this name. I guess I saw the word "hunt" somewhere but didn't want to use it directly, then found the rare word "haunt" on Baidu. As I got into Minecraft, I started using this name, gaining some popularity on the MinecraftPE forum (with 20,000 followers). I wrote many trashy ModPEs and a funny JavaScript (ModPE) tutorial.
Teaching JavaScript + Android to a primary school student who had no technical knowledge actually had a good effect. Since he didn't understand anything technical, he used simple language (based on his own understanding), which surprisingly worked well.
This period lasted until around 2016, as I remember getting into CSGO in 2016 and rarely used it as my Steam name after that.
Can you guess the meaning of "Choc" in "HauntChoc"? It actually refers to a character named "巧克力" (Chocola) from NekoPara. Surprising, right? Some people were deeply into visual novels around 2015 and had a great time with them (laughs).
Golden Age
As for the origin of the nickname "Nova," and when I started using it, and why I abandoned the nickname "Haunt," I cannot recall clearly. Its appearance was sudden, much like the word "Nova" itself, denoting the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently 'new' star.
Initially, this name was used in my CSGO games for a period (although I mostly used names of anime characters, "Nova" wasn't any character I had seen before). At this time, I was active on Max+, and I made some good friends there (although we rarely play games together now, we still chat daily and share pictures). They needed a nickname to call me, and for some reason, they chose "Nova" from my Steam nickname.
Gradually, I started using Nova regularly, but faced issues with duplicate names. Also, I felt that having such a long nickname like "Nova" with no additional identifiers was inefficient and lacked uniqueness. In March 2017, after the release of the Spectrum Case, I chose "neo-noir" as a suffix, which resonated with my skin. This has been consistent till now. Interestingly, neither "Nova" nor "noir" was chosen based on their meanings; I simply thought they sounded cool.
Around 2022, after entering university, I realized the importance of Chinese identifiers. Having a Chinese nickname can leave a lasting impression among Chinese-speaking communities, especially on platforms like GitHub, which are primarily in English. Besides, I felt that a nickname without Chinese characters looked empty on common social apps. Adding Japanese characters could work, but it wouldn't have the same impact.
Hence, I started thinking about translating "NovaNoir." Obviously, "Nova" and "Noir" are two completely contrasting concepts; while their English combination may have a unique aesthetic, in a Chinese context, it could evoke a "cringey" feeling—something like "魅影新星" or "暗夜新星," but the pun on "新星" didn't sound elegant. After much thought, I settled on 黯星座 ("Dark Star Sign"), a name that felt less edgy and somewhat satisfying.
To The Future
This should have been the end of the story. "NovaNoir" has become an irreplaceable identifier for me. Friends call me "nova" in games, classmates use "nova" in everyday life, and I use "novanoir" for gaming and competition names. I even own two domains, novanoir.dev and n.ova.moe. This coincidental yet long-standing nickname remains dear to me, and I may continue using it indefinitely.
This brings me back to why I wrote this article. When you see "nova," and then my name, what comes to mind?
As I grow older, I find myself liking my Chinese name more. My parents did a great job naming me with an elegant, high-quality, and pleasant single character. So, even though nicknames don't necessarily have to be related to real names, or only a few can be related, I suddenly wish my nickname could be one that others immediately understand the origin of.
After all, who wouldn't love a cat named Miu/Miyu that meows?
Of course, this doesn't mean I'll give up "novanoir." I really like this nickname, and the sunk cost of so many years doesn't support such a change. I believe these names will all clash fiercely (
I might use "novanoir" as my username/identity and use "Miu" or similar homophones as my display name/character. For example, registering an email account like miu@n.ova.moe—maybe then becoming a VTuber—or creating a Twitter account named "Neko Miu"—perhaps becoming a "furologist"—or using a cat avatar as "Nova Miu" for competitions? So, watch out next time you encounter a nickname with similar pronunciations in the anime world... <3
This Content is generated by ChatGPT and might be wrong / incomplete, refer to Chinese version if you find something wrong.