Can you politely tell people 'don't nickname my daughter'

I'm with the 'you can't stop the nicknames' brigade.

FWIW my Miriam has been known as Mivvi since she was a baby. Wasn't my idea originally - another little girl at the childminder couldn't pronounce her full name - but it's her. The Mivvster rocks!

I don't call Tink "Tink" all the time (although it often reflects how much time I've been online ) and I don't call my niece Mads all the time, mainly when we're messing around and playing.

When did I say Phil wants to be called Phillip? He's known by everyone as Phil, he introduced himself to me as Phil, his name badge says Phil, why should I call him Phillip? For me Phil's name is Phil.

Oh he did say he hates Phillip.

My neice is called Mads as a nickname, just like Tink is. It's nothing to with her name, I'm not shortening or changing it and I seem to remember I said I don't mind nicknames, but I don't like shortening or changing someones name.

I agree with brucelovesfrumpygrumpy and belgo.

just wait until they're teenagers. Their mates will make up their own names for them and you won't be able to do anything about it.

Lets ask Johnny! I'm feeling like he might.......

My name has a common short form which I hate, and my parents didn't like it. Apparently when I was 4ish I used to really kick up a fuss if people called me the shortened form.

Some people can't help it and actually I think its quite rude. Even these days I introduce myself as fullname and people will turn around and shorten it in the next sentence. It drives me insane. I know it sounds extreme but it really is like being someone else.

DD has a name which can't really be shortened.

Great idea! Maybe Boden do them?!

Have you thought about a t-shirt with ......my name is SAGGYTITS!!!

My name is saggytits but everyone calls me S.T!

I agree with Belgo but what HG said was also spot on. I also think it's quite rude to play silly games and pull passive aggressive shit by saying something unkind or sarky to the nickname user.

It's your problem, so own it by being direct, say -- "Sorry, I hate nicknames, I really only want her to be called Eliza".

Surely its a bit like someone calling you bigarse or saggytits. If its not your name and you don't like it, you say!

When someone called my Ffion, Fifi, I just said in a mock serious gangstery voice " you call her Fifi again and I'll kill you!"-that worked!

I think it makes you sound a bit precious if you make a fuss tbh. DD2 was named on the understanding that her name would only be shortened to one particular variation. Instead, many people shortened it a different way and as soon as she could speak, she insisted that way (not "my" way) was her name. I've just let it go - it's not worth fussing about.

If you really, really have strong feelings, call the child Tom or May or something that can't be shortened; but they'll probably find other variants anyway - Tommy or Maybe maybe!!!

One of my children has an easily shortened name and I detest the shortened version.

I say, "some people do call her blah but we're not keen and we call her blahblah". If they are touchy about it then so be it. Nicknames can stick and spread. If she chooses it later then so be it.

I think blahblah is a great name

Tinkerbelles mum - you say you wouldnt dream of calling anyone else anything other than their actual name but in the same sentence you go on to say that you call your neice mads and your friend Phil when he actually wants to be called Phillip

i do this all the time

really must stop

can't help myself

if i don't shorten names i lengthen them, like "lucy-lou" and "rosie-pose"

fine with my own, but need to stop

I just think it's impolite to shorten a name without asking first. I always ask first.

Just to explain my POV to the people who think it's precious.

I chose Isobel because I wanted to call my daughter that, she might like something different and when she decides that she can be called what she wants and not have to deal with lots of people calling her things that she doesn't like just because that's what people decided to call her.

I would not dream of calling another adult something other than their name, so why should I do it to a child because I want to? I call my niece Mads (because she's a mad madam, I tell her) but it's no where near her real name, it's my nickname as her aunt, I might call a friend by a nick name or an endearment - being from Birmingham most of my friends get called Hun (rarely Bab) but I wouldn't call them anything other than they told me to call them. I have a friend called Phil who I talk to online all the time and comes here once a week. I have heard him refer to himself as Phillip, it sounds weird to me, his name is Phil and I wouldn't ever call him anything different.

I had it with MIL and you need to say something straight away. It caused a massive rift and annoyed me as I had said at the beginning that DD was not what they wanted to abreviate it too, anyway I was cross as they were horrible to me about it even though it my child and a name I choose for her! ANyway after much discussion they stopped (well in front of me anyway!)

DS is Harrison... we call him Harrison or "H" .. I'm not ofended by Harry, but so far no one calls him that... but I figure its his choice to make .. and that when he is an adult he can be Harrison and isn't limited to a kid name. not that Harry is but I imagine Harry to be a kid or a grizzeled old man...

.. I have a cousin named Candy... its not really the best of names for an adult.. unless you are a stipper or a christmas elf... no offence to any Candys out there...

My Ds has a name which can be shortened but only one person ever has. I have never said he must be called by his full name. I love one diminutive and hate the other. He tells people sometimes now hes older. I also now lots of others the same. Its odd that people would do that.

hatrick, same here with DS1, he is Bobby, I'm sure if I'd called him Robert on his birth certificate he'd get Rob/Robbie, Bert (none of which I like) etc so he is the shortened version.

I had a friend at school called Vicky, we all knew her as Vicky, she liked to be called Vicky.
If we rang her house and asked for Vicky her Dad would say we had the wrong number! He was determined to have her called Victoria.
I have since got in contact with Vicky through facebook
Her poor dad.

My DD is Danni-Ella and people sometimes call her Danni, but she likes Ella, as do I so she is called Ella at home, she will correct people that call her Danni and say she doesn't like it, but if she did, I suppose it's something I would have to live with.

I was about to post when I realised HonoriaGlossop has said everything I wanted to say, and more eloquently too.

I think the only person who gets to insist on a name is its owner. My parents hate the shortening of my name and spent years pedantically correcting all and sundry but I liked it. Guess who won...