to hate this current fad for "nicknames" that bear no relation to the given name?

[MrsSchadenfreude]

Why not call them the nickname, FFS?

"We've called our daughter Annabelle but she'll be known as Elena."

Why? Why not just call her Elena - perfectly good name, IMO, from the off. Or Elena Annabelle, which goes.

One of my sisters goes by a boys name that evolved from a nickname of her actual name. The combination is so obscure I can't give the names as I will out myself in RL! But sometimes there is a reason, it's just not an obvious one.

YABU.

Charlie is not a proper name to be seen on a birth certificate. By allmeans call your child Charlie/Archie/Alfie/jamie, but please inform the registrar that your child is actually named Charles/Archibald/Alfred/James.

Doodlez Fri 19-Nov-10 19:51

~"Nick names bearing no relation to given name isn't a current fad:-

Margaret = Peggy.....go figure!"

Ireland circa 1850.

My old uncle was known as Bun all his life. His name was actually Hugh. And he was born around 1920, so it isn't that modern a thing.

It's nothing new, my dad is Robert known as Jack, while my DH has three aunties all known by various other names that bear no relation to their proper names. In fact one is called "Sis" and I couldn't actually tell you her proper name. I can tell you however that Sis is married to John whose name is really Ivan. And Uncle Dick was short for Robert, not Richard.

I once worked with a Portuguese lady called Maria who was known as Maria at work and her middle name at home. When I asked why, she said "do you have any idea how many Portuguese women are called Maria?" See what I mean?!

With older people it tends to be that they were named after a living relative and called a different name to prevent confusion.
ie: my mum was christened Elizabeth after her mother, but to prevent Big E and Baby E she was known by her 2nd name, Mary.

But I have to say I do agree with the OP, very odd.

LynetteScavo, you are so right, I had to fight my DH to call our DS2 Zachary and not Zak, Zak is not a proper name.

I had a great aunt who was Maeve, known as Nig. Because she used to go brown in the sun like, well, you know...

Lynette I have to disagree with you re the ~proper names.

There is absolutely nothing to stop one using the short name on the birth certificate, if anything it is more honest.

My sister called her son Drew, she would have liked Andrew after our dad but didn't want him getting Andy, so Drew it was, on the birth lines too

He is the only boy in school with that name, it is not pretentious and no one needs to enquire to the spelling.

yabu op, each to their own, don't be so miserable

Lynette, you have missed the point. Charlie and Archie are NN for Charles and Archibald. Elena is patently not a nickname for Annabelle.

My Nan and Mil are both known by their middle names, it leads to a lot of confusion at the Dr's!
[teddy]

Grr, why didn't that work??????

The thing that concerns me with full names that are never used is this. You are born Mary but get called Maureen all your life, then when you are really old and you die, lots of folk don't realise who the Vicar is talking about when he says Mary was such a good old bird. Ok, you know, as you are at her funeral, but the whole spiel, and the mass cards and notices all use a name that doesn't resonate with your image of Maureen/

Do you see what I mean? I have experienced this loads at funerals and always feel distracted by it, as if the vicar is burying someone I don't know.

perfumedlife, Drew is a proper name. I will officially allow it on birth certificates when I run my won country.

MrsSchadenfreude, I have never encountered this strange phenomena of which you speak. Hence my confusion.

It's very common in older people. I can think of at least 5 people I know atm who have this. Makes life in the NHS quite challenging!

(Make that 6 - no - 7 thought of another two!)

IWillCountToThree I am known by my middle name.

Idiotic of my parents.

*MrsBanana if you consider Zak not a proper name, why dont you mind that he will be called that all his life?

I always cause confused looks when I say that for my middle name of Ruth I was named after my great Auntie Peg.

Her names were Ruth Emma, but apparently when their neighbours asked her elder brother (aged 5) what they were going to call his baby sister he replied "well Mum & Dad have said she's Ruth Emma, but I'm going to call her Peggy", and it kind of stuck from then on...

She was born in 1902, so it's not a new thing!

I also remember DH & I going round for a meal at a friend's house - we had known him in the TA for a couple of years as Tim, and his wife kept calling him Charles - confused looks & then they explained that his names were "Timothy Charles" & he was always know by friends as Tim & family as Charles - eh?

Thanks Lynette I look forward to being a Citizen of your country

My Mum used to get the opposite problem in fact - she was christened Betty, but everyone always assumed she was really an Elizabeth, she used to get quite annoyed

perfumedlife. I love Zak but it just bugged me that his full name should be Zachary.......every child needs to be shouted at in the longer version of their name if possible, just so they know you are serious when you use it, if he hears me screaming Zachary he knows I mean business.

Fair enough reason my dear

YANBU

I work in a school and when you are searching for a file on a child called Y someones goes oh no they are known as X

Bloody annoying

Yes I've got the bear - sorry carry on as you were.