Some might think Alhaitham isn't very difficult to read despite his mysterious personality, but there's more to this scholar's design than you would think.

Genshin Impact's Sumeru region introduced quite a number of different characters, with one of them being Alhaitham, the present scribe of Sumeru Akademiya. Initially released in Genshin Impact's version update 3.4, Alhaitham receives an earlier rerun alongside a number of other Sumeru characters in version 3.7, giving players another chance to obtain him.

While most players understand Alhaitham's gameplay and the role like a Dendro main-DPS, in addition to his significant presence within the Sumeru story arc, there are many details about his design, in addition to certain coincidences and secrets surrounding his character, that could have been missed by some players.

Alhaitham's Name Origins

As with a number of other playable characters, locations, as well as NPCs in the Sumeru region, players will observe that Alhaitham's name also bears a resemblance to names of Islamic origin. In his case, it's believed that his name is really a direct mention of Ibn al-Haytham, who had been a prominent academic and scientist throughout the Islamic Golden Era. Interestingly, Ibn al-Haytham is recognized for his works in optics, specifically within the field of vision and perception. This may explain why he was chosen to be an inspiration for Alhaitham's name, especially given that Alhaitham's skills involve generating chisel-light mirrors that reflect light.

Furthermore, players may realize that among the many books Alhaitham reads, there's one particular book on Aristotle's Physics. This subtle reference breaks your fourth wall and draws an association with another significant scientific figure who shares similarities with Alhaitham. Interestingly, Ibn al-Haytham also wrote a vital book on Aristotle's Physics, contributing to the coincidences and connections between Alhaitham which are two intellectual figures.

Alhaitham Has A Lot Of Hidden Interaction Bits With Kaveh

Many players who've followed the storyline of those characters, in addition to events in Genshin Impact, know that these two characters are roommates with rather opposite personalities, leading to many fun and unique interactions between these characters for players to savor. Alongside the apparent interactions, however, players may even see more interaction together on different advertising boards across Sumeru, namely at Puspa Cafe, Mahamata Bulletin Board, and finally at Port Ormos. Funnily enough, apparently, Kaveh has written these messages when he's drunk and doesn't remember writing them.

In addition to any or all of these interactions, it is also said that they are doing resemble the interaction between Plato and Aristotle, especially given that Kaveh may be the senior of Alhaitham and does enjoy bringing this up. Furthermore, their outlook on life, with Kaveh becoming an idealist like Plato and Alhaitham being a materialist like Aristotle, also further supports this theory. To add to this, although it may entirely be considered a coincidence, Kaveh's splash pose art highly resembles Plato's pose within the painting of Plato and Aristotle, showing this connection might be intended for their design.

Alhaitham Resembles Su

Considering that HoYoVerse enjoys bringing characters using their company titles for their newer titles, it's not surprising that Alhaitham includes a counterpart in Honkai Impact 3rd to the same extent. While with a few characters like Raiden Mei or Yae Miko, this really is much more apparent, in Alhaitham's case, his counterpart is Su, while their personalities are rather different.

Both of those characters have identical hairstyles, especially when it comes to hair color, grey with green highlights, as well as similar body figure and outfit designs. While some might think that it may simply be considered a coincidence, in addition, is that they also share exactly the same voice actor for that Chinese language.

Alhaitham Is Not Interested In Being A Leader

Alhaitham is proved to be rather introverted, preferring to help keep a low profile rather than being portrayed as a hero. This facet of his personality becomes evident when he declines the role of becoming the following Grand Sage, despite initially accepting it temporarily due to the turbulent situation following events from the Sumeru arc's Archon Quest.

Alhaitham's interest is based on leading a basic and comfortable life, which aligns more together with his current role rather than taking charge and coming to the forefront of each and every situation. Furthermore, it's strongly implied that Alhaitham dislikes being in the presence of large crowds because he can be seen walking together with his music player and headphones to bar out unnecessary noise and concentrate on his own tasks.

Alhaitham’s Favourite Hobby Is Reading

While Alhaitham is visibly socializing and visiting taverns to meet up with old friends, considering his aspiration for basic life and the role of a scholar having a strong curiosity about knowledge, it comes down as no real surprise that he enjoys reading, particularly challenging books. When players visit his house, they'll notice a good amount of books scattered through the space.

What's much more intriguing is the fact that Alhaitham's dislike for soup, his least favorite food, aligns together with his hobby. He finds soups hard to eat while reading, further highlighting his dedication to spending his free time immersed in magazines. His preference for logic and efficiency can be seen even in his selection of disliked food.

Alhaitham's Birthday Is February 11

As far as Genshin Impact birthday parties go, Alhaitham is recognized as one of the luckier characters as his birthday isn't long after his initial release date. This means that players could get a birthday mail from Alhaitham, which discusses the significance of reading books, along with a few Sumeru talent materials and the specialty dish, Ideal Circumstance.

While Alhaitham's birthday might not coincide with having a significant world event date, which makes it seem less unique, it's interesting to notice that his birthday actually falls on exactly the same date as his English voice actor. Whether it was a mere coincidence or perhaps a deliberate plan is unknown, but it's certainly an uncommon occurrence for any Genshin Impact character as well as their voice actor to share exactly the same birthday.

Genshin Impact can be obtained now for PC, PS4, PS5, and cellular devices. A Switch version is in development.