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ArchivesRe: Diminutives of Martha
in reply to a message by LMS
"R" is a hard sound to pronounce for many, especially children, and so tends to drop out of lots of pet forms.
So Martha led to Matha, then Mathy, and then Mattie since the "t" is easier to say than "th".
Then during late medieval times in England Matty became Patty and Patsy. There were a lot of names which had "rhyming" nicknames that changed the first sound back then. Robert became Hob and Dob; Roger became Hodge and Dodge; and Richard became Hick and Dick, for instance.
For reasons that are unknown, the popular replacement for "M" at the start of female names was "P". So Molly, derived from Mary, became Polly; Meg, derived from Margaret, became Peg and Peggy; and Matty, dervied from Martha, became Patty and Patsy.
So Martha led to Matha, then Mathy, and then Mattie since the "t" is easier to say than "th".
Then during late medieval times in England Matty became Patty and Patsy. There were a lot of names which had "rhyming" nicknames that changed the first sound back then. Robert became Hob and Dob; Roger became Hodge and Dodge; and Richard became Hick and Dick, for instance.
For reasons that are unknown, the popular replacement for "M" at the start of female names was "P". So Molly, derived from Mary, became Polly; Meg, derived from Margaret, became Peg and Peggy; and Matty, dervied from Martha, became Patty and Patsy.
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