Do you call your child by their full first name?

[pleasejustgotosleep]

I'm just wondering really what others do
My daughter has two first names but I just call her by the first one. I'll sometimes add her second one but not often.

However a friend of mine has a daughter (let's call her Sarah-Jane) and she insists everyone says her full name when addressing her and not just Sarah.
I have met quite a few people through work who have two first names but just go by the first one and I just thought maybe I should calling my daughter by both of her names so she is used to it.
Idk just a thought. Would like other opinions...

yes but dc name is a shortening of a longer name anyways (think Kate instead of Katie/Katherine) so it couldn't get any shorter

An old school friend of mine has a son with a double barrelled first name. She had a rant on Facebook about people, mainly family who should know better, just using the first part of his name. In her case it really matters that people use both names.

@pelargoniums hahahah oh gosh. I should call mine that too. She is a windy little lady for sure

This is why I chose names for my kids that cant be messed about with. It is there name and are called it. My BIL kids all have very long winded names and middle names and it looks nice on the birth certificate but they are all called shortened versions of their name.

You have named your child and choose to only use the first part of their actual name. Your choice (but why bother with the add on in the first place)

@IncompleteSenten

those names are hilarious especially the really long one.

4DC, with 3-4syllable names. 2 use shortened forms and 2 use full name always.

I don't shorten my kids names, but I also gave them names which are hard to shorten. I only use their middle names for forms or if they are in big trouble I will say first name, middle name and surname and they know they've pushed it too far!

DD has a long first name (4 syllables) and none of the shortenings of it have ever really stuck so we call her the full name.

DS has a three letter first name which can’t be shortened but he’s generally known by his nickname, rarely his actual name. I’m always calling him and the dog by each others names. They both answer to either.

Ds has a short, unusual name (so no normal short version) and we and his friends never shorten it. Occasionally of course he gets full name inc middle and both surnames...

@CoodleMoodle 🤣🤣🤣

My DS has a commonly shortened name, with a couple of derivatives, but he mostly gets our surname with a y stuck on the end by most of his mates and wider group. He always gets his full first name by family. He says he likes it. People usually comment that that'll change but he's 21, I think it is set in place now.

DD also has a commonly shortened name but she insists on her full name from everyone. Same with me really, I'd never answer to my name shortened, it's just not me.

@Beaconofpope sounds very familiar although I'm the other way around for my son.

I'll call him the nicknames and then if he doesn't answer then his full name gets called.
He doesn't seem to like his middle name so when I say his first and middle name to get his attention he says "that's not my name!"

I then decide to break out into song just to annoy him further hahah

I’m not a big fan of hyphenated names, personally. But particular if they’re really long, I haven’t got time in my life to be calling Hermione-Poppy or Sophie-Amelia.

I love all of these answers.

And to the "why give them both names if you aren't going to use them" brigade - thank you. I absolutely love both of her first names so I will address her as both from now on.
She is only 2 and a half and she can say her first name which isn't a traditional name (and some adults even get it wrong) so I think I'll add on her second one while talking to her and see if she picks it up too

I guess she'll make up her mind on the future what she wants to be addressed as

In RL does this get that much thought? My friend had a baby last week and they chose a name.
I didn’t know whether to be alarmed and tell her that name could be shortened.😮 The horror!

@HeatwaveToNightshade yes that is a mouthful to get out when a fast bus is coming lol
I do actually know two Anne-Marie's. One is happy to be called Marie and the other prefers Anne Marie.

Interesting. You'd never call Mary-Kate Olsen Mary, she's always Mary-Kate. Anything else sounds wrong!

I come from an area where double-barrelled first names are common, either with a hyphen or conjoined (eg MaryAnn). Often they'll be known by their initials (so 'Em-Aye').

I do remember one lass who, not only lumbered with a very old-fashioned male double-barrelled surname (along the lines of Brian-Derek) got lumbered with a double-barrelled first name too. I always wonder what her parents were thinking, especially as her older brothers got short, single names.

Yeah, my son’s name is only four letters. I do lengthen it for fun, and have a few nicknames for him.

His cousins have double barrelled first names, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard their parents not use both names. I’m not the biggest fan of double barrelling first names, but I don’t see anything wrong with however people want to shorten them or not. Some of them can be a bit of a mouthful.

Personally I cannot stand double barrelled first names. I have one myself and the first thing anyone ever asks me is that I prefer to go by. Cannot stand that either. My parents used to insist both names were used when I was younger which I then picked up on and said the same when people asked. However, I soon shortened it to one. To the extent I was once employed by a company for 5 years before anyone realised my name was double barrelled.

This was way back before it became some sort of stupid trend to burden children with two first names, of which half the time don't even go together. Thankfully I didn't burden my child with the same.

I have worked in schools where younger children are known by both first names. Personally I find this too long and find myself trying to shorten it, then correcting myself. My children have fairly short names and are known by them, although one of them their friends sometimes shorten it.

Both DS have single names, but long. Always use shortened name or nickname.

Both of mine have unusual names which could be shortened. Eg Tristan - be he likes the full version and corrects anyone that says it ‘wrong’. Daughter is similar - you can shorten them but they don’t like it.

I had a woman in my NCT group who gave both children unusual names Cassiopeia was one and insisted on everyone using the full name for about 4 weeks and then started calling her Cassy - daughter hated it everyone asked what Cassie was short for Rg Casandra at secondary other horrid students said ‘can I ask for a pee’ all the time to her at 13 (unfortunately her surname was related to the topic as well eg Wetman) she is now Emma and at a different school with a different surname.

it is such a responsibility to name children and to ensure cute nicknames eg the early lucky - boy or lucky - buoy aren’t a tool for added mental / emotional stress