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HelpRe: William and Nicknames
in reply to a message by queenv
I'd call my William (if I had one) Wilkie. I'd be fine with him changing that to Will as he gets older.
I dislike Willie, mostly because I know people who refer to a penis as a 'willy' with young kids.
I don't mind Bill- I see the appeal but it seems dated to me still. I'm coming around to it more as I have lost two elderly uncles named (nicknamed) Bill in the past few years and I do think it sounds strong. I see it coming back soon.
Billy is cute. I'd be open to it being used if it suited. But I'd expect it to become Bill when he gets older. It is a pet hate of mine when men still go by childish nicknames- I don't know why and I'm sure I could delve into all sorts of ways that I have been socialized in regard to gender and I'm sure I'd agree with people's arguments that it isn't an "equal" view to have but I just don't like it. Like when men still go by Petey instead of Pete or Ricky instead of Rick or Mikey instead of Mike. I don't know why it bothers me so much. Billy and Willie both also fall into that strong dislike when they are used on adult men (unless it's around family because it was their childhood nickname). There are exceptions though to that but I can't think of many- I don't mind Paddy on any age for Patrick? I can't think of any more than that haha. Danny doesn't bother me as much as some others but I'd prefer an adult man go by Dan.
Liam seems forced as nickname these days for William. I know it is a diminutive and it can be a nickname but it has been used as a full name in Ireland especially for so long that I view it as basically the "Irish version of William". I like Liam a lot. If I wanted to honor a William so I really wanted that as a full first name, I might consider Liam as a nickname in that case but otherwise I'd use Liam as a standalone name.
I love the full name William. It's handsome. But I know myself well enough that I know I would never stick to calling my own kid William at all times. I have a tendency to shorten names and give people nicknames and I absolutely know that I'd give a hypothetical son named William a nickname even if I desperately wanted him to be "William" haha. And I would consider naming a son William under the right circumstances. It's eternally popular and common but it's handsome and strong and has a long and interesting history of use and it's a family name for me over many generations.
I dislike Willie, mostly because I know people who refer to a penis as a 'willy' with young kids.
I don't mind Bill- I see the appeal but it seems dated to me still. I'm coming around to it more as I have lost two elderly uncles named (nicknamed) Bill in the past few years and I do think it sounds strong. I see it coming back soon.
Billy is cute. I'd be open to it being used if it suited. But I'd expect it to become Bill when he gets older. It is a pet hate of mine when men still go by childish nicknames- I don't know why and I'm sure I could delve into all sorts of ways that I have been socialized in regard to gender and I'm sure I'd agree with people's arguments that it isn't an "equal" view to have but I just don't like it. Like when men still go by Petey instead of Pete or Ricky instead of Rick or Mikey instead of Mike. I don't know why it bothers me so much. Billy and Willie both also fall into that strong dislike when they are used on adult men (unless it's around family because it was their childhood nickname). There are exceptions though to that but I can't think of many- I don't mind Paddy on any age for Patrick? I can't think of any more than that haha. Danny doesn't bother me as much as some others but I'd prefer an adult man go by Dan.
Liam seems forced as nickname these days for William. I know it is a diminutive and it can be a nickname but it has been used as a full name in Ireland especially for so long that I view it as basically the "Irish version of William". I like Liam a lot. If I wanted to honor a William so I really wanted that as a full first name, I might consider Liam as a nickname in that case but otherwise I'd use Liam as a standalone name.
I love the full name William. It's handsome. But I know myself well enough that I know I would never stick to calling my own kid William at all times. I have a tendency to shorten names and give people nicknames and I absolutely know that I'd give a hypothetical son named William a nickname even if I desperately wanted him to be "William" haha. And I would consider naming a son William under the right circumstances. It's eternally popular and common but it's handsome and strong and has a long and interesting history of use and it's a family name for me over many generations.
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I doubt there are that many grown men who actually go by Petey or Mikey. I've never even known any children to go by those.
In the US, y-nicknames for men tend to be somewhat dated except in the south and rural areas. I think some age well, like Charlie and Jimmy, but some don't, like Teddy and Timmy. Timmy, especially, is a stereotypical little-brat-with-an-angel-face kind of name.
You won't find a Paddy here in the US very often either. You will find a Pat, but not a young one. Come to think of it, I only ever met two Petes, and one of them had the last name Peterson and that was where it came from.
I once had to have an echocardiogram, and the technician doing it was named Pete. I remember my husband and me kind of giggling about it later because one of us said something like "Pete? Who's named Pete, anyway?"
In the US, y-nicknames for men tend to be somewhat dated except in the south and rural areas. I think some age well, like Charlie and Jimmy, but some don't, like Teddy and Timmy. Timmy, especially, is a stereotypical little-brat-with-an-angel-face kind of name.
You won't find a Paddy here in the US very often either. You will find a Pat, but not a young one. Come to think of it, I only ever met two Petes, and one of them had the last name Peterson and that was where it came from.
I once had to have an echocardiogram, and the technician doing it was named Pete. I remember my husband and me kind of giggling about it later because one of us said something like "Pete? Who's named Pete, anyway?"
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