View Message

I don't think there's anything wrong with them. Generally, I like them. I do have my own nickname problem though. I've been Missi since I was 2 and now I feel I've outgrown the name. I've tried to start going by Melissa, but it's not catching on very well and I have one friend who flat out refuses to call me anything other than Missi becuase that's how I was introduced to her.

I really think it depends on the nn. Some are preferable to others. Some longer names are just so lovely they don't need nns. Some nns are rather unattractive or unappealing to some people. For some it's just preference. For the most part, I tend to lean towards being more of a full names person, but there are certain nns. I'm ok w/. Deb's ok if one's in a rush. Debbie I can't stand. Kate is kinda nice. Tired of Katie... esp. on adults. Billi on a girl can be nice as is or as a nn. W/ our current culture's mindset, BJ's a rather unfortunate nn for Billie-Jo and various other combos that lead to that nn. Frankie's actually kinda nice on a girl... and Bobbi and Robbi can be too... Though, I'd have to admit, the majority of y and ie nns, I'm not so much a fan of... esp. when a child hits teen years and older 'cause they can sound too kiddish.
However, if someon prefers to be addressed by his/her nn, I will gladly oblige him/her out of respect for the person's preferences.

I personally just think nicknames take away from beauty of the original name

I don't dislike nicknames. My first child will be Joshua or Abigail and most likely be called Josh or Abby.
There are just certain names where I don't like the nicknames or they don't need a nickname or I just think the whole name is better without one.
I actually dislike naming your kid a nickname instead of the given name, like Billy instead of William or Bob instead of Robert. So I would rather see a nickname.

I don't mind them. Some of them sound kind of sweet, for example, my parents occasionally call my sister Anne "Annie". They can be endearing, or cutesy, though I prefer the endearing type.

Maybe I don't like them because I never had one. I just prefer names that don't lend to nicknames. I want the name they are called and the name they use to be the same. I hate when teachers take attendance and every other kid is a Katherine called Kate or a Alexander called Alex. It just annoys me. Basically I agree with most of what CN said.

There's nothing awful about the concept of nicknames. There are just some names for which I dislike all nicknames - e.g. I love Alexandra but I dislike Alex, Lexie, Xandra, Allie, Alexa.. etc.

Well, I prefer my full name, but I love nicknames of certain names. I'm actually really picky about nicknames. For instance, I love the nickname Ted/dy for any and all Ed- names, but not for Theodore; I love Theo and Dorian for Theodore.

---

For certain names, I just don't love the nickname like I love the full name. This keeps happening to my girl names. I love Rose, and while I like Rosie, I can't bring myself to say, "Yes! That will be her nickname!" Same with Margaret, nns Maisie, and Maggie...

Everyone gets nicknames in my family- it is completely and totally unavoidable- and so I always take potential nicknames into consideration when I like a name. For example, Meredith was in my top 3 girls names for quite awhile. It has recently disappeared off my Top 10 not because I dislike the name, but because I could never really use it. I don't like any of the potential nicknames and Meredith is just too long for her to not get one in my family. She'd end up being Merry or Mez or something :/

---

If a name has a good nickname, it can be enough to make me love it (I began to love Edith because of the nn Edie- now I love Edith itself as well). I also love names with lots of nickname potential like Elizabeth, Penelope or William.

---

Anyway, I'm rambling :-p

---

The crux of it is, I am a total nickname person!

I love nicknames. I came up with several for my daughter before she was even born and I'm always coming up with a new one every day. Despite not hearing her actual name that much she still responds to it at 4 months. lol.

---

I prefer a long formal name with lots of nickname possibilities so you can call them something different every day! lol. But they also have an elegant formal name to fall back on.

---

I know people who do both. I know an Elizabeth, Caitlin and Daniel who always go by their full name, and a Richard "Dick", Marjorie "Marjy", and Peter "Pete" who never go by their full names.

This message was edited 6/16/2010, 1:06 PM

Personally, I adore nicknames and I'm pretty sure all of my future kids will have one, unless their name cannot be shortened any further. I think nicknames are really endearing. However, there are certain nicknames I dislike, even for some of my favorite names, and I'd try to avoid them by calling my kids by only their full names or nicknames I do like.

It's just a guess, but I'm guessing that some people aren't keen on nicknames because they think it "dumbs down" the name or something. I don't think that at all! In fact, I can think of plenty of nicknames for the full names I like. I also have a few nicknames that are used on me in real life. My BF primarily goes by a nickname, only called his full name in more formal or professional situations.

---

Growing up, nobody really used nicknames when referring to me, and I don't recall hearing nicknames much. (at least not ones that are close to the name.) For example, I have a cousin named Corbin, but his father almost exclusively calls him Buddy or Bud. Nowadays, I have at least 3 or 4 nicknames that people refer me to it seems.

Depends on the name, if I had a daughter Katherine I would call her Katherine or at times Kat. I don't like Kate or Katie (but I'm okay with Cate, it's a long explanation). I know a Jacob that everyone calls Jacob, a Kathryn everyone calls Kathryn, an Elizabeth that goes by Elizabeth, etc. Generally as long as everyone refers to a person by "Jacob" or "Elizabeth" everyone else generally follows suit (but there are always exceptions). That said, I'm not overly worried about a Katherine becoming Katie unless she wants to be called that.

To me it can be that they don't care for the way some nicknames sound. For example, I love the name Bartholomew, but hate Bart.

I don't like nicknames when they are used more often than the full name, when the person identifies with the nickname and not the full name. I hate when people introduce themselves with a nickname. I don't see the point of naming a child Alexander and always call him Alex. Or even worse, naming a child something completely different than the nickname you're planning to use. Posts like "What do you think about Angela nn Ella? make me wonder why they just don't use Ella if that's what they want to call their child.

---

There's nothing wrong with nicknames but it does bother me that people think of nicknames for names even before they have a child to name. In my opinion nicknames are something you use when you have named your child and then realise that you might want to use something shorter from time to time. You do not think of a cute nickname and then try to come up with a full name.

---

None of my favorite names need a nickname and to be honest most nicknames are not even close of being as nice as the full name. If I named a son Alexander he would be Alexander. I don't want to use nicknames but if I ever get to use any of my favorite names and then realise that maybe I don't want to say Isidore or Emmanuel every single time then yes, maybe I will come up with a nickname I would like to use.

---

I love nick names. It bugs me sometimes that I don't have a name with a natural nickname. My friends call me Shiv or Shev sometimes - and it freaks me out when casual acquaintances do it. My ex-boss used to call me Siobhánín and Siobhání sometimes which I found a bit odd.

---

My mother is very anti-nick names and she tried to chose names for myself and my brothers that had no nicknames - didn't work of course - we all had nick names from our friends.

---

Sometimes I don't like a particular obvious nickname and I can understand people saying I really like Katherine but don't Katie (for example).

Nicknames do not fit with my personalty, maybe I am too bland or formal.

I like nicknames but sometimes I don't like a specific nickname. I love Rebecca but hate Becky, I wouldn't mind Becca. I love Theodore and love Theo, but don't like Ted. It's probably the nickname itself and not nicknames in general.

I agree with you. I don't see anything wrong with nicknames. I come from a nicknamey family. My mom didn't have one (hard to come up with one for Zoe, nor is it at all necessary), but my dad was called by a nickname totally unrelated to his actual name. His given name was Joseph but he was called Bud.

---

My brother had a nickname, but it was longer than his actual name. His name was John but we called him Johnny. My sister Linda didn't have one, and I've never had one. (You *can* get Jan from Janice, but don't dare call me Jan! Nobody ever has.) My younger sisters both have one, Pamela is always called Pam and Patricia is always called Patty.

---

I planned on nicknames for both of my children. I used Victoria but always planned to call her Torrie, because I personally feel that Victoria is too much of a mouthful to say all of the time. William is always called Will. In his case, I chose Will because I don't like Billy or Bill, so to prevent people from assuming that was his nickname, I chose another.

---

There are some names that I like, but they have nicknames that I don't like, certainly. Like I mentioned below, I love Veronica but hate Ronnie. In that case, I would forgo the name altogether.

---

But I think that some names, such as Elizabeth, Victoria, Alexander, Patricia, are just cumbersome to say all of the time, and practically scream for nicknames, and I don't see anything wrong with that, provided the parents like the nickname. If they don't, best to avoid the name.

Not really, but I find it very weird that people ask "I am going to name my son David, but I will use Dave as a nickname". It is weird to me because I don't know any people here who have decided their own children's nicknames before the child even is born. Usually the nicknames comes after the child is born (form family and friends) or when the child is older and is in school. And I dislike short names with a nickname, because they don't need one.

---

Longer names with a shorter nn however is fine by me.

Yeah, I'm with you--I generally like nicknames. I'm an Alexandra, who has been nicknamed Ally, Al, and Alex at different times in my life when each fit. When I was young, I went pretty much exclusively by my full name. My mom said she almost didn't name me Alexandra because she was worried people would call me Alex! Now I'm Alex to the majority of people who know me, and it's doesn't bother me a lick (my mom is almost over it now, too). I love having a versatile name, and I would never insist on someone calling me by my full 4-syllable name if they prefer something briefer.

This message was edited 6/16/2010, 8:50 AM

nah

---

I love the opportunity for nicknames. Sometimes I'll even lengthen a short name to make my own nickname. It's just that some nicknames I do not like - because of asssociations, or I just don't like the sound. Like for example, I hate Jamie because every Jamie I've known has been a dreadful person, so the thought of a James (which I like just fine) being Jamie makes my skin crawl. And though I know no bad Alexes, Allies, or Als, I'm not crazy about the sound of those, so Alexander et al. are "out" for me.

I think some people want to avoid nicknames just because they love the full name, and you don't hear the full name said on its own often. I love nicknames, but I do find it refreshing to hear a kid get called Thomas or Elizabeth.