Inventing your own nickname

[OldClothes]

I know I'm probably unreasonable but here goes.

A young volunteer colleague of mine calls herself by her nickname and seems to want everyone to use it. It relates to her first name but it's not a common variant and is barely shorter than her actual name.

It's also very informal - the sort of thing someone might be called at school by their close friends, but most of us barely know her. AIBU to find this a tiny bit annoying?

I discovered today that people in my office (hot desk space, so we're not actually colleagues and all a bit crap at names) call me Moto Woman because I've never bothered to change the ringtone on my phone🤒
Whenever it rings it blares out "hello moto"

Our culture is so weird about names. They really change how we are perceived, but you get assigned one by your parents, often before you're even born, and are expected to labour under it (or one of a couple of commonly accepted diminutives if you're lucky) whether it suits you or not.

I've worked with people who chose to call themselves Shazzle, Nonny, and CC. Not what I'd pick for myself, but so what? I'll call people whatever they tell me their name is - why should I get to decide what name another adult goes by?

I work in a multinational environment. We have Ziggy, Bebbel, Fi - Fi, Maya and others (including me) who don't go by their "passport" names. I'm looking to take my nickname as my middle name as barely anyone knows my given name and even my bills/parcels arrive with my nickname on the heading.

I do get slightly irritated by the double-barrelled first names and the effort of chewing on those. Like Molly-Mae getting offended by being called Molly. I'm trying to get over my lack of effort though!

I was once introduced to a man called Ginge. I think his name was Jonathan, but he had ginger hair so everyone called him Ginge. I felt quite uncomfortable calling someone I'd only just met Ginge. I don't think I called him anything.

I grew up living fairly close to a boy named Bubbles.

When he got to the 6th form his parents gave him a car once he passed his test & had it custom painted with bubbles.

Everyone including all the teachers called him Bubbles.

He was a massive rugby playing boy, nothing even remotely bubbly about him & I have no clue when or why he got that name but after a bit you just got used to it.

I don't even think I ever knew what name he had on his birth certificate, he was always just Bubbles.

It felt completely normal to call him that.

I have a user name I made up that I've been using on the internet elsewhere for well over 20 years now.
There are plenty of people who think it's my actual name.

There are people who knew me first online who call me that because to them, it's my name.
Telling them my actual name doesn't make a difference.
I've been my user name for so long, my real name feels wrong when they call me that to them & me.

You could say I made up a nickname for myself, although it wasn't ever my intention.

Rebbers is just silly. I am assuming she is a Rebecca who hates Becky?
Most Rebeccas I know go by Becca if they use a nickname.

Grow up ffs.

I honestly don't see the issue, call the person what they want to be called, unless it is racist, homophobic or a swear word. Anyway who said she invented the nickname? It may be something her parents or friends started calling her and that is how she is known. Sometimes people are so used to being called by their nickname they don't even register when you call them their full name that you are talking to them

I grew up living fairly close to a boy named Bubbles.
There's a Gaelic footballer (John O'Dwyer) nicknamed Bubbles because he was a hairy baby and his family called him after Michael Jackson's chimpanzee

Bunny Guinness is regularly on Gardners Question Time , Chelsea Flower Show etc The people around her got used to the name.