Proper Names v Nicknames

I have a diminutive name, though I think it is often used as a proper name now when I was growing up everyone who had it apart from me had the longer version and I hated people asking if my 'real' name was XYZ rather than X.
I have never wished for any other options my name is my name.
I really don't see how it can have that much of an impact on a future career. I understand that their are going to be a minority of stuffy people who may look down on someone because of their name but they are just as likely to look down on other factors as well such as school, university or address. There are just far too many factors, for a name to be such a major issue.

Harry, Archie and Charlie are all nicknames!! I love Kit short for Christopher BTW

I don't think that you can reverse engineer short forms into long forms if the long form doesn't belong to you IYSWIM. Except as much as anyone can change their name that is.

My nn from family begins with a different letter than my full name, and they always used that initial. I always used my full name at school though.

The closest equivalent to Kit/Christopher I can think of off hand is Bob/Robert, and the Bobs I know do use R not B.

All of mine have got "proper" or full names on birth certificates but have always been know by their shortened NN.

Some people have told they think it's silly to give them names I might never use but I like the idea that they have options of what they want to be called as they got older.

Rightly or wrongly the whole judging factor also crossed my mind when naming them as rightly or wrongly it's a fact that often people will look at application forms etc and make assumptions based on their names.

I've always wondered - if your real name is a so-called "nickname" type name, what is to stop you using the full name as your nickname/given name even if it isn't on your birth certificate. Eg surely someone called Alfie can call himself Alfred as his nickname if he wants to, just as much as someone called Alfred could call himself Alfie. Can't they?

I also think people will soon tire of the currently trendy cutesy nicknames - Alfie, Archie, Ellie, Evie, Charlie, Poppy etc. and it will be nice for the child/teenager/adult to have a more solid proper name to fall back on imo.

Good point about the initial, jellybeans. Becomes an issue when you start labelling school/sports kit.

Jesse and Milo aren't nicknames, no.

Also Archie, Harry and Charlie are definitely nicknames, not "proper" names.

I think naming a child with a nickname is a) unnecessarily limiting (why not give the full name, and with it a range of choices for nns?), b) makes them sound like eternal toddlers, and c) can look bad on a CV.

Yes, we can all crow about how people shouldn't be so prejudiced, but the fact is there are prejudiced people everywhere, so why not minimize any chance of your child being sniffed at by a wannabe toff with an attitude problem and an HR role?

The thing with Christopher/Kit though is what initial do you use? Is Christopher 'Kit' Smith C.Smith or K.smith? Doesn't it get confusing. Kristopher would maybe be better?

I personally prefer a long full name on BC but that's just me as it's seems pretty commonplace these days to have names that might be considered as nns on BCs...

Another short form of Christopher is Christy (popular in Ireland). Just saying.

I wouldn't personally want to be called Kit: as it's a noun that crops up everywhere, there's ample piss-taking potential. First-aid kit, Airfix kit, kitbag, drum kit etc etc. Get your kit off

Jesse and Milo aren't nicknames, as far as I know .

I quite like Kit as a name in it's own right, a lot of people will assume it's a nickname though. I like Kitty for a girl as well, though might be inclined to go for Katherine as full name in that case, as it's a little bit 'cute' I guess!

You may find by secondary school teachers keep using the long version anyway. I ha a friend Vikki who always got called Victoria, Chrissie was called Christine and Charlie Charlotte despite them not being their real names

Love the name kit though smiley face

Don't forget nicknames often come from your surname , when I was at school I was called Riggers ( from rigby) and wriggle bum. I fled to nursing school glad to escape those names but instead got called riggers of weather ( showing my age) from a tv add for wood preservative!

You cite 'Jesse' as an example? Jesse isn't a 'nickname' - it's a traditional Old Testament 'full' name?? I love Jesse

I'm a fan of "proper" names and personally wouldn't put Kit on teh birth certificate. however, that is personal preference and there isn't anything wrong with Kit. So long as you are not calling your child "satan" or "fuzzy wuzzy wobbly bear darling" then just call him whatever you want.

I think Kit is a cute nickname for a boy. I would, however, give your ds a 'longer' name because, as others have said, it gives him more options later on. Being Christopher, he can choose between Kit, Chris or Christopher (or another nickname altogether ). Good luck!

I see it this way... Even if you only ever call him Kit, he might prefer a different nickname or his full name later in life. As others have said, it's all about the options.
I call my boys by their nicknames and never use the full names, but they are there if they need them. Remember it's not only about what you like, but what your son will like too.

I think Kit is fine on its own. I have a long name with several nn and it is annoying. Short seems to informal, long too formal (only used at doctors etc) and middle one bit babyish perhaps sometimes. You can't really just 'switch' if you are always called your nn, it seems weird to change to another.

I see nn as more plays on a name such as Shaz, Kaz, Daz, etc and not short forms. Short forms aren't really nn. many names have come from a different name, even names we see as proper. EG, Benjamin from Benyamin. Many names have deviated from their original. I like short forms such as Ben, Sam etc but think Alfie, Archie etc are abit cutesy so for those would use long form (well maybe not Archibald).

I would just have Kit in your case as it is a strong name, a short form of a name. It's not cutesy or informal.

I really like Kit as a nn, but I don't think it works as a name in it's own right.

I like proper names with a variety of nns.

One of our dc has a short version/nn as their full name. We didn't like the long name options, we wouldn't have used them. If they prefer the long name when they are older then I suppose they can call themselves it as a nn!! Seems silly to put a name you are not that keen on on a birth certificate with no intention of using it just in case they prefer it when they are older. They might prefer to be called something totally different anyway and think your choice of both full and nn to be terrible!!

I loved the names harry and milie but felt they werent "proper" names. I ended up calling the twins harrison and emilie. That way when they are older they can decide what they want to be called. Thats just me though :)

I prefer proper names, though I don't know why. I only liked "Sam" when DS was born, but I was completely unable to put that on the birth certificate. I just couldn't do it.

So he's Samuel, but always gets Sam unless he's in trouble. I like Samuel now, though. :)