Nicknames you like more than the actual name?

Manderlin923 · August 2013

We have two names on our long list that we actual prefer the nn over the full name. So much so that I would consider actually using them instead of the full name. Normally I am a fan of giving a more formal option but not always. How about you? Are there any names you would consider using despite it being more of a nickname? Does it matter to you?

Scarlett&Gatsby · August 2013

I'm a pretty big advocate for just using (some) NNs. I like Kate more than Catherine; Maggie more than Margaret; Tillie more than Matilda (but not more than Tallulah, not that that's a normal formal name for Tillie, anyway); Andie more than Andrea; Sasha more than Aleksandra; Hank more than Henry; Jack more than John.

Barbercharm · August 2013

I've never understood the "we're naming the baby Mary but calling her Molly" nn thing. If you're going to call the baby by the nn, then give it that as a name.. I name my children what I want them to be called.. But I know I'm in the minority here.

youenjoymyself · August 2013

My first name is Jennifer, but I have never gone by that. Jenny fits me much better, but I'm still happy that I have a more "formal" option, too.

youenjoymyself · August 2013

And why would one call Mary Molly? That just doesn't make sense to me.

annieravensfan528 · August 2013

I personally like Rosie a lot more than Rose.

WashingtonQueen · August 2013

Well my son is Xander, not Alexander.

dollypardon · August 2013

I think Archie was mentioned here the other day. Archie's great, but the full names (Archibald, Archer) just don't seem as nice to me.

mylittlekitty · August 2013

DH and I are currently in this debate about the name Edward/Eddie. I am a supporter of naming children what they will be called but a few months ago 2 of DH's SILs (without knowing about our naming preferences) had an in depth discussion about how a name like Bobby, Eddie, Ricky, Billy, etc seems 'white trashy' without the formal name.

DHs full name is a NN and it has never been a problem for him so the SILs may have to bite their tongues in the future.

mh89 · August 2013

I love love the nn Evie but haven't found a formal name for it that I love as much (Evelyn, Evangeline, and Genevieve are ok). Since we couldn't find a good formal name for Evie we had to scrap it.

I say in most cases give the kid a proper long name, though there are always exceptions.

ashie624 · August 2013

If we had a boy we were gonna name him John but call him Jack. The reason we werent naming him Jack, was John was for DHs dad (he is still alive but we wanted to honor him) but we wanted to use a NN for him. And later he can decide what he wants to go by..we had a girl but in the future this is still an idea.

emmylou78 · August 2013

I like the name Lexi but Alexis is too close to my nieces name, Alexandra. Not sure if I could do Lexi as a stand alone

HattieDornbush · August 2013

I love Ben, but don't care for Benjamin.

CowgirlK39 · August 2013

HattieDornbush said:

I love Ben, but don't care for Benjamin.

Funny you should mention this, I was thinking of his name yesterday. I am okay with Benjamin, but do not like Ben. However, I LOVE Benny. As for people who use weird nns, I work with a whole family of people who do that. The dads name is Don, but he goes by Mick. His son is Jeremy but they call him Jake. I have no idea where they get those from but whatever.

LadyXaverian · August 2013

CowgirlK39 said:

HattieDornbush said:

I love Ben, but don't care for Benjamin.

Funny you should mention this, I was thinking of his name yesterday. I am okay with Benjamin, but do not like Ben. However, I LOVE Benny. As for people who use weird nns, I work with a whole family of people who do that. The dads name is Don, but he goes by Mick. His son is Jeremy but they call him Jake. I have no idea where they get those from but whatever.

I know a Benny and a Benji, and I love both of those nick names. Benny is actually the one man's given name. He's in his 60s, and very much a professional, so it's definitely not too cutesy (as I suspect some people may say).

I also like Bennett at least as much as Benjamin.

Anyway, DD is Elinor nn Nora. I really wanted to name her Nora, but we were honoring DH's grandmother, and he felt strongly about using Elinor as her given name. I really like the name Elinor, but I *love* the name Nora.

I also like Sadie as much or more than Sarah. And I like Tille as much or more than Madilta.

inthelost · August 2013

I love love the nn Evie but haven't found a formal name for it that I love as much (Evelyn, Evangeline, and Genevieve are ok). Since we couldn't find a good formal name for Evie we had to scrap it. I say in most cases give the kid a proper long name, though there are always exceptions.

I had the same problem...I love evie but didn't like any of the formal names for it and didn't want to name her evie alone so I scraped it too.

PinkyFloyd73 · August 2013

I love Evie, but I can't get on board with Evelyn and Evangeline (which are both pretty names, just NMS).

cmw&tdm · August 2013

I like Kate and Jack more than Catherine and John.

Kate070 · September 2013

It's not my normal style, but for some reason I adore Ned. But I have a negative association with Edward and am not all that fond of any other Ed- name (Edmund, Edwin...)

g8trkim · September 2013

There are a lot of NNs I prefer over FNs. I always think it's weird when people name a baby something but never intend on actually using the full name anyway. That said, it really depends on the name, like I love Kate, Luke, Jack, Nora but there are some NNs that sound too kiddish to use forever.

erbear · September 2013

My daughter is Kate. We didn't like any of the longer names, and we knew we were going to call her Kate, so that's what we named her.

Notwifezilla7 · September 2013

I love Millie!

I really am a fan of more formal first names, however and so we tried. We both did not like Mildred, Millicent, Amelia, or Kamila. So we dropped it. I still find it utterly adorable.

macska3 · September 2013

I love Sadie, dislike Sarah.

macska3 · September 2013

Also--Tony is one of my favorite names, but I'm not a big Anthony/Anton/Antonio fan.

jburdet1 · September 2013

I love Daisy and only like Margaret. However, I would never name a DD just Daisy.
I feel nicknames exist for a reason and find it really strange when a person has an obvious/well known nn as a fn like Johnny or Ellie. IMO, it never hurts to have options and having an obvious nn as a fn limiting.
Also, I, as the parent, would be sick of explaining to each new person that my DD's name, Ellie, wasn't short for anything.

blu-eyedwife · September 2013

I like Winnie so much more than any longer name it could come from.

But based on my personal experiences, I would never name a girl a nickname name. There are certain professions that it is hard enough to be taken seriously as a woman without having a diminutive name.

oneblessedmess · September 2013

WashingtonQueen said:

Well my son is Xander, not Alexander.

I couldn't think of any, but I actually am on board with this one - I like the name Xander much better than Alexander.

MRads · September 2013

I love Max and would consider using it, but Im not a fan of any of the formal names to get Max as a nn.

caramia582 · September 2013

We just named our DS2 Drew, not Andrew. We just don't care for the full name. I struggled with it a bit and got mixed reviews about it on here, but now that he's here I'm happy with the decision! Drew fits him so well and I like that its a little unexpected.