NAME REGRET

Yes change it, if she wants the long version later she can change it back.

@bridgetreilly really??? That makes no sense at all. Every human beings child is a person, not a doll or a pet 😂 and I've never known a newborn be able to tell their parent their name preferences. She could agree with her mother and want to drop the longer name for all you know.

Yes, but it's not YOUR name. It's your child's name and she might prefer the other options. She's not a doll or a pet, she's a person. Why wouldn't you want her to have choices?

That's not really fair bridgetreilly is it? Every parent chooses their child's name . It's the child's prerogative to change it later but it is quite definitely something which is under the control of the parent! (otherwise we'd give them a code number till they reached a certain age and could choose their own name )

There are any number of threads where the subject of shortening and nick names comes up. I know many people who rejected names they liked to avoid a shortened version they didnt like.

All the OP wants to do is have the birth certificate match the name of her child.
It's that simple.

PLUS I dont like any other shortening and there is a few!

Yes, but it's not YOUR name. It's your child's name and she might prefer the other options. She's not a doll or a pet, she's a person. Why wouldn't you want her to have choices?

All my exam certificates are in my diminutive name as that was registered with school/university. That was the name I used on all my exam papers.

My bank accounts may have been opened originally with my full name, I can’t remember, but the name on my accounts and cards is the diminutive. Some cards just have my initials.

My doctors/NHS letters refer to me as the diminutive. They may have my full name on file somewhere but if so it’s not used.

Bunnysmum I dont have experience but think I understand what you mean.
I had the name Beth on my list for Dd.
Definitely Beth, not Elizabeth.
I can imagine other people suggesting giving her the full name and agreeing at the time ...And then wishing I'd stuck to the original plan.

So, if I've understood you correctly, I would change it officially and tell people.

@tatianalarina that's really interesting, so even on your gcses/a level/degree certificates was your diminutive name? And the bank let you open accounts in a name different to the passport/driving license you need to prove your identity to open the account? I can't even get them to change my maiden name to married name on my account nor my sons child trust fund account without taking in my marriage certificate for them to copy or posting the original to their head office. My doctors records have my registered birth names that are linked with my NHS number, i just presumed that's something that without legally name changing you'd need to keep as legally registered. What does your driving license have on it out of interest? Sorry for all the questions just curious. X

At school, no, my given name was the diminutive and I was never known by my full name. Teachers didn’t even know it wasn’t my full name. (The diminutive is a name in its own right).

All my bank accounts, credit cards are in my diminutive name.

It’s so long since I’ve bought plane tickets, as my husband organises them, you may be right about that.

@tatianalarina otherwise I guess I could register a bank account in the name of Penny Lane because I like it, won't match the passport I use to open it though so not sure why they'd require it for proof of ID?

@tatianalarina you can't buy a plane ticket using a shortening of the name in your passport at all, they have to match up and they're very clear you must not make spelling errors. Despite having my marriage certificate I had to pay to change my name to match my passport to travel. The school forms have given name and preffered name on so the class teacher can use your preferred name and I've never known a legal document have a name that is not legally registered. Yes there are circumstances you can use your preffered name but not these.

sorry, that shoudl say, his proof of identity has his LONGER name on it.
It is especially a problem if someone else is doing the paper work, as you don't always know what they have put and they get confused

and actually, it can be a real pain.

dh is not British and in his country it is common to have one official name, but be known as something else everyday. Dh's official name is only on his passport.
But the number of times we have made a mistake with buying tickets etc, and then his proof of identity has his shorter name on it. If you never, ever use the longer version, you do tend to forget that you have to use it for official things.

Your full name is on your passport, that’s it. You don’t have to buy tickets in your full name. You don’t use it for anything else - bank, doctors, school etc. I’ve been my diminutive since I was 11. There’s nothing in my full name other than my passport.

there is a column on a birth certificate which says 'name if changed within 12 months'
If you put a new name in this column (obviously officially) then it is really simple, and that is then their legal name, not the first one. There is no need to state 'formerly known as' anywhere either.

@tatianalarina it would be OK if OP actually liked the name on the certificate. You can't give any other name for passport so would but travel tickets in the official name, the bank will take your full name, doctors or school surely not as you need to present birth certificate for school definitely, sure you can request at school for use of a preferred name but it won't be on certificates with exam boards later on. I think you need to go with your gut on this sort of thing personally, the reason for name change is because it is not the name you see as your child's given name, it's a big deal to most.x

It’s fine to have the full name on the birth certificate but only ever have her known as the diminutive. You just tell everyone that’s her name, and give it as her official name at school, doctors etc.

Name regret can be very strong and I believe if changing the name is something very important to you then you should do it. The choice of your child's name can carry such strong emotions and sense of identity for a parent and I don't like seeing this dismissed. I know people who have done this in the first 12 months and it's not a big deal. It's also also surprisingly common.
I know people who have officially changed their names as adults after thinking about it for years, and then find it such a relief. You already know the arguments for having the longer version of the name, but clearly that's not right for you. Just do it.

As long as she is under 1 & also has not been christened then it’s very simple to do

Yes I changed my daughters name at 3 months old it was incredibly simple & I was so relieved once it was done

Leave it as it is and just use the short version.

That gives your DC more choice in the long run.

A childhood friend was christened Katherine but only ever called Kathy.
She uses her full name as her professional name though and it definitely sounds better.

I changed my son's middle name. From what I remember it was easy to do and I got a new birth certificate with the new name. It was 8 or 9 years ago so don't know what the rules are now for doing it. I would change her name if you really want to.