Note: The man said in a Facebook post on Nov 25 that his name was a hoax. He claimed to have played the prank to show up Facebook's rules on using real names in profiles and to fool the media.

An Australian man's quest to get Facebook to accept his 'offensive-sounding' name has taken off - albeit belatedly - in a big way.

Mr Phuc Dat Bich, who is of Vietnamese descent, had originally posted his rant on the social media platform on Jan 28, claiming that his account was shut down multiple times.

Posting a photo of his passport to prove his point, the 23-year-old bank employee also wrote: "I find it highly irritating the fact that nobody seems to believe me when I say that my full legal name is how you see it.

"I've been accused of using a false and misleading name of which I find very offensive. Is it because I'm Asian?"

Mr Bich's post was revived and went viral last week thanks to a Reddit thread, and has since garnered more than 84,000 shares and attracting over 13,000 comments - the overwhelming majority of them supporting him.

In a follow-up post last Sunday (Nov 22) night, Mr Bich thanked all who had got behind him and said he hoped he had "played a part in brightening your days" in light of the tragic events occurring all over the world.

"I'd like to mention that I am very grateful to those who have been supportive of certain names that populate in different cultures," he added. "We live in a diverse and multicultural society and the fact that there are people out there who are supportive and encouraging really makes me happy.

"I've never ranted nor wept that my post would get this sort of exposure. But I am glad and honoured to be able to make people happy by simply making them laugh at something that appears outrageous and ridiculous."

Facebook has yet to respond directly to Mr Bich's case. The BBC reported that one of the key points in its username policy is for users to refrain from using "offensive or suggestive words of any kind".