Well I never knew this!

[Jeanolly]

I've just had a lightbulb moment (at least I think I have!).

I never knew until about 2 minutes ago that Jimmy is a diminutive for Jeremy. I thought it was short for James. Or maybe it's for both?

Oh, and Sasha is a nickname for Alexander !!

Natasha is short for Natalia/Nataliya/Natalya in Eastern Europe.

I’ve never heard it used as such here. I think it may just be them.

Why would that be the official translation? The Welsh language is older than the Bible. Ioan is the word used for John just because William Morgan decided to use that particular variant - doesn't make it a more valid or official translation of John just because it's the Bible. This is a chronic thing for the Welsh language though.

I have a Jem whose real names is James. I always thought that was the name Jem derived from, was quite affronted when I met a Jeremy/Jem.
I think Polly and Molly are from Mary, not Margaret. Margaret has Madge, Meg, Peg, Daisy etc

This is broadly my experience although I think is less the case nowadays.

I once met brothers named Billy and Liam and giggled 😳 but the people I was with had no idea they were both short forms of William.

I think it’s in a nursery rhyme book where there are pictures and the piggy has a shopping bag, my mum try old me it was the pig market when I was older … he may have become a breeding piggy for a pig farmer so had a life of good and knocking up miss piggies 🤣

If you want to delve into relationships between names look at https://www.behindthename.com. I can spend ages looking at the family trees and finding connections between different names.

Yes. Sasha in Eastern Europe

Ah, so you've personally checked every other Liam in existence and made sure none of them are William? Jolly good

No I think it's been listening to all the messages in this topic, no wonder it's upset

I’ve got a Jeremy in the family and never known anyone call him Jimmy. Jez occasionally or sometimes Jerry. Also got a couple of Jimmy’s in the family and both are actually called James. I suppose anyone can call anyone absolutely anything as a nickname. It doesn’t make it the norm!

Liam is not short for William. It is the Irish equivalent of William.

Not unusual at all in Ireland at that stage. He may well have been baptised William but known as the Irish version of his name. My grandfather’s ’official name’ was English but he was only ever known by the quite different sounding Irish version.

Liam is not a diminutive of William.

People keep saying this but Liam is used fairly regularly as a short version of William. I know two Liams, one it's his given name and one is a William shortened to Liam (his Dad is William)

I've now written William so many times it looks weird

Most Irish Catholics back then were officially called after saints and loads of people had the same name so there were loads of Irish versions and diminutives used.
For example, a 70 year old Irish man called Patrick could be known as Pat, Paddy, PJ, Padraig, Pauric or Patsy. Williams were Willie or Liam more than Billy.
Mary was by far the most common girl's name and most of the Maries, Mays, Maires, Mauras and Mollys are officially Marys.

Yeah that's right, Billy or Willy for protestants and Liam for Catholics, my family name is William generations of men with that name and never once were any known as Liam as we were protestant, wullie actually was the most common nickname.

Well yes,I really realised this and then felt guilty about eating my ham sandwich after! Lol! And sad that the little piggy squealed all the way home, probably crying about his lost sibling 😢 😳

I believe you!

The only Polly I have ever known was a Pauline who went by Polly! No idea it wasn’t from Pauline

Lots of full names are variants of one another, which explains why diminutives can seem strange.

For example, I never understood how Jack could be the diminutive for James until visiting Italy with my DH I learned that the Italian version of James is Giacomo (pronounced Jackomo). Now it makes total sense. 😊

Why were you affronted?

Surely Fred?

Fred is from Frederick, surely, or Alfred at a stretch. Never known a Wilfred who wasn’t Wilf (including my granddad and two great-uncles).

Yup and Freddie/Freddy.