From Weiniang to Nanniang: What the Chinese Internet Record Actually Shows

August 9, 202612 min read GenderLibs Editorial Team Gender Culture Internet History Gender Terminology ResearchBilibiliChinese InternetCross-DressingInternet LanguageNanniangWeiniang

An archive-based chronology of Chinese online usage of weiniang (伪娘), nü zhuang dalao (女装大佬), and nanniang (男娘) since 2007, tracing shifts in character classification, creator self-description, audience labels, and platform discovery.

From Nanliang to Xiao Nanliang: How a Homophonic Place Name Became a Platform Label

August 7, 202610 min read GenderLibs Editorial Team Gender Culture Internet History Gender Terminology ResearchBilibiliCross-DressingInternet LanguageNanliangNanniangXiao Nanliang

A case study of Nanliang and Xiao Nanliang across Bilibili, AcFun, TapTap, Chinese web fiction, and technical communities, tracing how homophony, nicknaming, series branding, creator self-description, audience labels, and platform discovery produced a new layer of Chinese community language.

The Multiple Sources of Nanniang Culture: Characters, Cross-Dressing Practice, and Chinese Platform Labels

August 6, 202611 min read GenderLibs Editorial Team Gender Culture Internet History Gender Terminology ResearchCosplayCross-DressingFemboyInternet SubcultureNanniangOtokonokoWeiniang

A research encyclopedia entry tracing six converging sources of contemporary Chinese nanniang culture: Japanese character publishing, cross-dressing and cosplay practice, Chinese ACG translation, mass-media circulation, platform interaction, and English-language femboy recirculation.