#is it his chue len? or is it his first name?

[markmybirds]

Hello welcome to the ramblings of an Art Historian and Researcher who is hella tired from no sleep. This is a Happy Ending post. I'm starting out strong: I think Sunshine and Moonshine are all over this. Sunshine especially.

He saw the Beast of Prey in the midst of day. Sunshine will appear Tomorrow. Also just.. the dreaming part, if Anawin dreamt up Damon and designed him. Did he dream of Moonshine? We all know Moonshine is unhinged from the Dum Dum M/V. Moonshine will disappear till you close your eyes. Okay. There's also a name-science. I'm noticing it. This could be me in my delulu. But I am a world-builder and conceptual artist by trade. The first thing I do when I am naming something is look into meanings. Damon means: The one who subdues/tames. A historical Damon dazzles Dionysus who is considered untamable with his loyalty for Pythias. It also means Guardian Spirit. His braille on his neck "I am not a demon" (quoted by Studio on Saturn) could be nodding towards maybe Sunshine (who Jeff says is not an angelic form he just has always existed/is an immortal) or the idea that maybe Damon really isn't a demon and is actually given a second chance to watch over either his creator or creation: Anawin. However Damon and Dam/Dum do have a Thai Script in common. both being renditions of the same Thai nickname for men. ISTG if. If. Damon has Dam or Dum for a Chue Len. I'm gonna flip (in a good way). Dum and Dam meaning "Dark, black, topsoil and/or Merciless". Anawin has a few meanings: beautiful, little one, humble person, poor. Okay the amount of fanfic writers who have Little One or Angel monikers for Barcode, I'm like. I'm crazy for that. Keep it up. Because my brain thought about that. (I thought of War really). Also the.. last post of mine with the sneak peek for the pilot coming on the 15th. I considered that the song is describing Anawin. And it's fun to see how the lyrics stack up together with Anawin's name meaning. I think I see you Jeff. Maybe just a little bit. Also. I think if no one is blind/has low vision, someone is definitely colourblind. And for the blindness I think

This looks like someone's vision. I have a blind spot in my right eye in my far peripheral. It gives me that.

[telomeke]

MOONLIGHT CHICKEN – DIRECTOR AOF'S CAMEOS (AND SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT)

It's now a tradition with GMMTV series directed by Aof Noppharnach Chaiwimol (and sometimes in those produced by him as well) that you can expect cameos from the directors/producers somewhere along the way.

(above) A montage of GMMTV producer/director cameos

At first I thought these appearances were purely for laughs, but now I think there's also a measure of tacit messaging going on whenever producers, directors or assistant directors pop up on screen (see this link here).

So after Assistant Director Au Kornprom's cameo in Moonlight Chicken Ep.5 [2/4] (see this write-up linked here), I was on tenterhooks waiting for Director Aof's own cameo. And sure enough he showed up later in the same episode: 👀

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.5 [3I4] 14.48

But remembering that their cameos aren't always in person onscreen (e.g., Producer Aof's and Director Au's cameos in My School President) – Director Aof has actually had four cameos in Moonlight Chicken. The one above is his sole live appearance in the series, but he was also referred to by name at three other points:

Ep.3 [1I4] 2.11;

Ep.3 [1I4] 2.17; and

Ep.7 [3I4] 6.35.

The following are screencaps of the scenes where his name was mentioned, for reference:

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.3 [1I4] 2.11 – "Nop" has been used before to refer to Director Aof (it's probably derived from his formal first name "Noppharnach", and was first seen in his cameo as Tutor Nop in My School President Ep.10 [2/4] 1.05)

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.3 [1I4] 2.17 – Also in the same scene, "Aof" is of course also Director Aof's informal nickname (his ชื่อเล่น or "chue len" – see @absolutebl's explanation on Thai naming conventions linked here)

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.7 [3I4] 6.35 – the text on the funerary display board at the left (below the metal tray/plate and above the radially-arranged metal spoons) translates to "Condolences from the Chaiwimol Family" (ขอแสดงความเสียใจจากครอบครัวชัยวิมล), where "Chaiwimol" is also Director Aof's family name

Maybe I'm just being pessimistic, but when read together these appearances don't signal quite the same upbeat positivity of the cameos in other series. Part of it is surely contextual – there isn't much levity at all in Moonlight Chicken (except when Saleng is around, perhaps) and Director Aof's cameo scenes are all ponderous with suggested import.

Looking first at the scene of the Marina Food Court project meeting in Ep.3 [1I4], we see that Director Aof's name is used for two key players on the team.

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.3 [1I4] 1.28

The parallels with real life are striking – we have team leader Aof who is project director, just like Khun Noppharnach is often in the director's seat for GMMTV shows, and team member Nop who's in charge of the presentation slides, just like Director Aof is also someone who controls the visual storytelling onscreen.

Remembering that the Marina Development threatens the existence of Jim's diner, livelihood and his found family – it's highly unusual that Director Aof's cameos here should be aligned with the forces that loom portentously over the story's protagonist, instead of on his side. 🤔

So this is what I think it means – the characters of Nop and Aof holding influential positions on the Marina Food Court team may be a nod at Khun Noppharnach's other role at GMMTV, on the side of management – he's also Senior Director of Content Production (at least according to his MDL page, at time of writing):

No disrespect to GMMTV – they've given us a whole raft of amazing shows – but as a commercial entity I'm quite sure their focus on profits doesn't always align with Khun Noppharnach's more activist visions, especially when it comes to greenlighting shows that go heavier in pushing LGBTQ+ rights (e.g., The Eclipse and Not Me).

It's sometimes a weird and uncomfortable mix, when shows with a serious social conscience lean against a backdrop of blatant commercialization. I'm thinking of series-associated merchandising, in-show product placement, fan meets and pair branding (e.g., the fanservice couples such as FourthGemini, BrightWin, OffGun, PondPhuwin, ForceBook, FirstKhao, EarthMix and JimmySea). There is no doubt in my mind that there must be constant pressure to dial back the political messaging in favor of more traditional BL storytelling (i.e., lighter and with more focus on romance), that's easier to spin out into various income streams targeted at the teen and young adult market.

With the characters Nop and Aof, I think Director Aof is calling out the inherent paradox of him being part of the machine that commercializes queer love and queer relationships, often forcing it into certain shapes and flavors for maximum saleability to straight audiences, while he and his team of writers (I think) would prefer to be championing LGBTQ+ rights instead. (Sometimes the mixing of the two does work, as in Bad Buddy, but I think that's more the exception than the rule.)

Anyway, things take a darker turn when we look at Director Aof's in-person cameo at Ep.5 [3I4] 14.46. He's cast in the role of a restaurant server, dressed in funereal black, who is unsuccessful at lighting the fire that must have been burning at some point between Alan and Wen. He's also told that his services are unnecessary (when Wen says "No need to" in response to his offer to rekindle the burner):

(top) Moonlight Chicken Ep.5 [3I4] 14.46; (bottom) Moonlight Chicken Ep.5 [3I4] 14.48

Director Aof then leaves the scene, but he doesn't do this by slipping quietly off to one side – instead, he loops around and foregrounds his departure as he crosses between the action and the camera before exiting screen left:

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.5 [3I4] 14.55

OK, so a lot of this is conjecture, but the ominous undertones here are unmistakable. The fire having gone out between the (erstwhile) BL couple, and Director Aof's inability to relight it, could be signaling that he's no longer fired up for the BL genre, or maybe thinks he's no longer needed for it. And his crossing the screen to exit also suggests that he might be making a change or departure of some sort. It may be signaling just change of role though, not entirely a change of job perhaps (so let's not lose our heads over this quite yet).

I'm further propelled along this line of thinking by the general themes and plot reveals in Moonlight Chicken, where the ideas of rebirth and new beginnings may also be pointing at the same for Khun Noppharnach (noting that Moonlight Chicken's protagonist Jim is also a middle-aged gay man who finds his way to new beginnings later in life).

Jim giving up the diner for a life of greater freedom, selling khao man gai from a mobile food truck instead, may also be communicating Director Aof's desire to return to smaller vehicles for his craft (bearing in mind that his great love is directing queer dramas, about which he's posted on Instagram before – see this link here).

With this in mind, I'm also getting a sense of Khun Noppharnach having handed over some key duties to the next generation (which I think is also part of the messaging behind Au Kornprom Niyomsil's cameo in Moonlight Chicken – write-up linked here). This is further underlined by Au Kornprom's second cameo in Moonlight Chicken when he passes the bubble tea redemption card to Jim (a stand-in for the current generation, i.e., Director Aof), to hand over to Li Ming (the next generation):

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.7 [1I4] 15.33

As for the Ep.7 [3I4] funerary display carrying Khun Noppharnach's name (among all the other wreaths at Mrs. Hong's wake, written up here) – it's a message of condolence from his notional family, so it's in keeping with the somber and serious tone too.

(above) Moonlight Chicken Ep.7 [3I4] 6.33

Funeral wreaths are meant to offer comfort to those left behind, but another way of looking at them is that they are also a send-off for the departed, a final Bon Voyage so to speak (if you believe in an afterlife beyond the present one that is). And if the messaging thus far is that Khun Noppharnach may be looking to broaden his horizons with other endeavors, perhaps the subtext underlying his cameo in this scene is that Mrs. Hong isn't the only one embarking on a new journey – it looks like his cast and crew are bidding him farewell. 🤔

But what might those "other endeavors" be? It could be he's stepping back from his GMMTV management role to focus more on directing and/or indie filmmaking. That's one possibility and I think it's the most likely, since it parallels Jim in Moonlight Chicken shifting his life's work to a smaller, more nimble vehicle, no longer tied down to a fixed edifice (his diner, standing in for GMMTV perhaps) and its heavy attendant responsibilities.

Then again, this being an election year (2023) – my mind is reeling with juicier possibilities. Could it be that Khun Noppharnach is eyeing a stint in politics perhaps, just like Director Golf Tanwarin's previous turn in Parliament? 👀

I know it sounds a little farfetched, based on only one appearance and three mentions of Khun Noppharnach's name in Moonlight Chicken.

But there have been signs of heavier political messaging in recent GMMTV shows. Not Me and The Eclipse were both commenting on the oppression of existing power structures on the LGBTQ+ community. Meanwhile, My School President and Moonlight Chicken separately also spoke of dinosaurs in positions of authority that need replacing in order for LGBTQ+ rights to move forward:

(top) My School President Ep.12 [1I4] 13.10; (bottom) Moonlight Chicken Ep.7 [2/4] 7.58

And Moonlight Chicken itself also has embedded themes that nod at the political (see this write-up linked here), while Wen himself has spoken directly about the need to have queer MPs defending LGBTQ+ rights at Ep.7 [2/4] 8.04, saying "I may become an MP candidate. If I'm chosen I will write a new draft bill."

If a political future is really what all this is hinting at, it seems a little strange that Khun Noppharnach would choose to announce something this momentous in such a veiled manner, so I'm not entirely convinced myself that this is where it's all going. (And even if my guesses are off the mark, which they probably are based on track record of previous predictions, hah! – I'm still convinced that significant change of some kind is in the offing.)

But then again – given the love Khun Noppharnach has for his craft – if he was going to make an announcement of this magnitude, what more heartfelt way is there to do it than via his beloved medium of film and drama, in a series with queer love and awakening at its heart? 💖

I would if I could, Khun Noppharnach! 👍

[absolutebl]

Hey !! Hope you're doing well.

First off thank you for posting such detailed analysis and answers to your asks !! Much appreciated.

Idk if you have already discussed this before so I thought I'd ask. I'm just really curious to know if Thai people have names that sound like english words or if they are actually english words they use as names bcz of the meanings? Like First, Man, Force and stuff ?? I find it very interesting.

Also thanks for answering my last ask in so much details. Loved it. Have a good day !!!

Hi hi, I do have a whole thing on Thai names here:

[aristotles-denial]

tfeb ch38 cultural notes

the end notes were getting too long so i’m posting them here!

i provided sources for non-english words & cultural tidbits that aren't the first results that come up when you search them And for ones i had very specific sources for

Clothing:

jinbei: a set of matching shirt and short trousers worn in japan — wikipedia

chang pong: a cambodian top — a source

sarashi: a length of white cloth wrapped around the body in a variety of ways in japan

pa’u: a hawaiian skirt worn for dancing and ceremonies — some sources 

according to the first source above, no one else should wear someone else’s sacred pa’u (their sacred pa’u being the specially dyed one they receive after completion of ‘uniki rites (‘uniki being graduation exercises)), which is why hoshi says theirs is off limits for chai son to wear

longyi: a burmese sarong (aka a long length of fabric tied around the waist)

mo hom: a short-sleeved, round-necked thai shirt made from fabric dyed w/ indigo  

dudou: a traditional chinese undershirt

aqlitek: central yup’ik; pair of earrings — source

according to the same source, letting ear piercings close up ruins your eyesight

i’d also like to point out that so far i’ve only been using inuktitut for swt words, but b/c the water tribes are based off of inuit, yup’ik, mongolian, & chinese culture, i’ve decided to switch it up a bit just like i do w/ the fire nation :)

erdang: ancient chinese earrings — some sources 

Tianzhu 

tianzhu and bharata are both alternative names for india. tianzhu is the historical east asian name for india, and Wutianzhu means “Five Indias” b/c there were five geographical regions of india known to the chinese, so i used that to refer to the group as a whole. though bharata also refers to india as a whole irl, i have it referring to the group closest to the fire islands b/c, according to wikipedia, Bharata was originally an epithet of Agni (+ the sanskrit root bhr literally means to be maintained (of fire)). so like remember Guru Pathik from canon? in this he’d be tianzhu. but not necessarily bharata b/c he lives in the Eastern air temple, not near the Western. taka is half bharata b/c a) atla has a lotta hindu & indian cultural influence yet guru pathik and combustion man are the only ppl who are indian-coded (that i remember), so why not actually have some indian ppl and b) my face claim for her — shivani persad — is trinidadian with indian roots :) i Completely made up their history of being nomadic and then settling and all that tho; i didn't necessarily base that part off of india. i just based it off of guru pathik’s statement of his people being spiritual brothers of the air nomads. i hope this all makes sense so pls tell me if you need any clarification. tho im doing this all outta appreciation and respect pls also tell me if anything comes off as insensitive :)

Naming

noong chaii: thai; younger brother 

pii saao: thai; older sister

according to this source, in thailand, “People may also address close friends and relatives using honorifics based on their gender, status and relationship to one another. For example, someone may refer to a younger male friend as ‘noong chaai’ (younger brother) and an older female friend as ‘pii saao’ (older sister). Such terms often indicate closeness and endearment.”

phaw: thai; dad

seimei handan: a japanese naming practice in which, “given names are chosen so that the number of strokes of the kanji in the child’s name are an auspicious number.” -- source

chue len: thai; nickname

Fire Nation naming practices are a mixture of Japanese and Thai practices. some things i mentioned:

in thailand, “Children are not always named immediately after birth in Thai culture. It is common for children to be given a nickname [...] before their official name is decided.” -- source

thailand: “It is common for parents to consult with a monk, fortune teller, or other respected person in society in order to choose the most appropriate or auspicious name for their child.” -- same source as above

reading up on this i realized that the naming practices in japan and thailand are like way different. like in japan names go surname given name, while in thailand it’s the other way around. also in japan it’s more common to refer to someone using their surname -- w/ a few exceptions -- while in thailand personal names are preferred.

in japan nicknames are (usually) formed by adding -chan to the full given name or to a shortened version of the given name. in thailand nicknames are super important and everyone gets one. kids are first given short nicknames that’re used in everyday life and then they’re given their longer formal names that’re mostly used for stuff like paperwork. nicknames can range from shortened versions of the given name, to animals, to food, to english words

i sorta meshed these ideas together: not everybody gets a nickname (which is japanese) + the thai formation of nicknames

thailand: “In later times, babies were given two names to confuse malevolent spirits who may want to steal the baby away or interfere with the person’s life. It was felt that by having two names the spirits would be less likely to meddle in people’s affairs.” -- source

Misc 

zabuton: a japanese cushion for sitting

zaisu: a japanese chair with no legs

[absolutebl]

Thai Names & BL

Why SO Weird (to Westerners)

You're looking for information on the Thai chue len.

We might say "nickname" but the actual translation is "play name." And it's what an anthropologist might call a "use name." So this is the name you go by IRL, not necessarily your legal name.

First I should say that this is a lot more common than westerns realize, even in our own past. Many Roman women, for example, we know operated under what amounts to a chue len. And it was probubly quite common among the lower classes in Ancient Egypt and Greece, too. But since the poor and females are chronically understudied there isn’t a ton of data (or written records, for that matter).

The chue len has to do in part with the history of names in Thailand, and the fact that until relatively recently most people only had a given name and a chue len, and then when government regulations went into effect mandating a last names it quickly became really complicated.

You can read a great article on Thai naming conventions here. It’s fun to learn about. I highly recommend it. And I am going to assume you did read it and now talk only about the bits left out and odd. 

The bit most BL watchers ask me about is answered in this statement: 

“Many Thai nicknames are derived from English words. They may be English sounding names (such as ‘Anna’) or more obscure words that are chosen for their meaning, e.g. Book (symbolising intelligence), Bank (symbolising wealth).”

However, like most English words used in Thai, they aren’t pronounced the way we would pronounce them. (Hell when have you ever heard an American pronounce something like a Brit, anyway?) 

One amusing example is “bur” which is Thai for “phone number.” It’s our word, but they made it... better. You can watch Dean ask for Pharm’s digits using just this one word (in the scene where he drops him off for the first time in UWMA). 

What the article doesn't say about chue len is that sometimes they are chosen for fun/silly as a baby name (like fatty) and then changed by the person themselves at any point in their life. 

You can opt to change your chue len whenever you want, since it's not a legal name. Also its not uncommon to have different ones with different groups (so one for friends, another for family, one for the public if you’re a celebrity, another for your lover). 

Daonuea (literally starnorth AKA Polaris or the Northstar) in Star in My Mind does this, he uses two: Nuea with friends, Dao with intimates.

I hope you can see how in a language where you use your OWN NAME for the I pronoun regularly, this is VERY easy to do?

Also, the article doesn’t say that a chue len can also be based on a popular band/idol/actor at the time of birth. I understand from my Thai bestie that Golf/Gulf was one of these for a while back in the 90s? I think.

Anyway, I also found Thai names odd to start, now I barely notice or register. Partly because what we read in English captions often doesn’t really sound like what’s being said.

For example, both Tine & Type sound the same to me, like Tyyyyee.

Also I amuse myself with wondering how they got that name. Like if a baby is named Bbomb - erm, did they blow out their diaper all the time? Probubly not because that’s very English culture specific, but I’m still amused. Was War a really violent child? Are all those Flukes happy accidents? Why is Gameplay called Gameplay? Was he a big gamer who chose it for himself? Or did his parents get together because of an in-game romance?

It’s fun to think about the reason, because there usually is one. 

There’s another naming convention the article doesn’t really talk about, which is all the chue lens amongst siblings often either rhyme (e.g. Win & Lin in Cupid’s Last Wish) or start with the same letter. Thai BL Kpop idol Bambam of GOT7 talks about this (he and his sibs all have B names). And also, hilariously, the fact that he actually doesn’t know his own brother’s given name because they have always just used the chue len with each other so he never had to learn it.

Some actors will take and go by (at least for a time) a more western sounding name (Phoom --> Pavel) but you’ll hear their Thai friends using their Thai name or a different chue len (much like some Korean idols). Others will go by a Thai name for in country work (Stewart --> Perth). 

There is an episode of 2022′s Safe House where GMMTV actors all talk about their use names and where they come from and their siblings names etc... but no one ever translated it and I’m a dumbass who didn’t save that ep to link, sorry.

Here on Tumblr we tend to tag actors by their chue len + given name, partly because many actors choose that as their social media handles on IG etc... 

Finally, you can watch Perth talk about some of this here on his YT channel.

from a question from @doorajar​ 

(source)