What is with the obsession with nicknames here?

[Crunchymum]

I see it on almost every other thread.

Baby will be Jonty NN Jethro my example is not real

Surely nicknames evolve? You don't get to pick 2 names for your kids??? If you prefer Amelia then call your child Amelia... not Amelia but NN Millie.

Gives me the rage!

For what it is worth my second DC has a name that crops up here every now and then and is almost always followed by the NN commonly associated with it. The name is never mentioned without the NN? We have never, ever used this shortened version for our DC!

(and breath)

"wound up" and "annoyed" are mumsnet speak for "vaguely interested"!

My oh has the full name version of a common name but only ever gets called the nickname (think Michael/Mike but it's not that).

He wishes his parents had just called him the nickname.

It annoys me - because of the inaccuracy - it's a shortens or abbreviated name, not a nickname

Every time I see 'nn' I want to scream 'short version'

useyourimagination that's my lifelong understanding of a nickname too, something personal that evolves, not just a recognised short form of the name.

My own DCs have had lots of various nicknames from different sources, family, school, other friend groups. They answer happily to all of them.

I wonder if anyone ever calls Prince Harry 'Henry' except when they refer to him in church or on official occasions?

I think if you go for something like Elizabeth, you can introduce them by your preference, ie Lizzy but if they have the full name don't be surprised if all her friends call her Beth when she's 13. Surely the point of giving the full name is so they can change it - never understand people giving a name like that but they can't stand Beth (for example)
also my girls nn now have nothing to do with their actual names - most people call the toddler bob...i did not name her bob but it's happened naturally and stuck

It's the I like this nickname what will I call him or her that I don't get. 2 of my dc have short 4 letter names. Dd has a granny nickname that just kind of evolved and ds1 gets his lengthened. Ds2 has a long name with a few short versions. I was adamant that it wouldn't be shortened I love his name. Unsurprisingly it was me that started the variations as I seem to have some weird affliction that means I rarely say my dc's names normally. That version has stuck now and is used in school and everywhere. Even his dentist calls him it. I use it as well but I hate seeing it written down with his surname it sounds clunky. But I can't think be too choosy I started it and at 6 he's more than capable of stating his preference and he does

There's nothing at all wrong with considering short forms and nicknames when you're thinking about naming your baby, obviously - it's the reverse engineering that is so odd, when you like a short form, but not the full name it usually derives from, so you post saying, 'We like the name Kit, but hate Christopher, so what other full names could Kit be a short form of? Ezekiel? Geoffrey? Rocco?' And then when everyone says 'Just call him Kit!', the poster says 'But it's not a High Court Judge name!' etc etc etc.

As someone else has said, there's a difference between a traditional shortening of a name and a nickname; the latter is a spontaneous creation but the former can be chosen. So Nell is a traditional shortening of Helen and you might name your child Helen on her birth certificate but always call her Nell. She might additionally have a family nickname of NelBel and a school nickname of Nelster. Her school friends are unlikely to choose a nickname based on Helen, though, as she is never called that.

A shortening is v different to a nickname IMO. Joseph nn Joey not Joe is a shortening. A nickname is more silly, like Jemima known affectionately as Duck.

(I realise I just used 'nn' as shorthand in my non-nickname example... Lazy!)

I am biased as we reverse engineered DS' name. Name we chose sounded like a nickname and as I'm a hypocrite we went against my own advice to name your kid whatever you're going to call him, and gave him a longer version for his birth certificate.

I'm afraid I don't give a single hoot if that pisses anybody off

Stupid things I've called my children in the last 24 hours:

Chickpea
Tulip
Grumpy Chops
Fishface
Bearface
Petal
Darling
Short Stuff

I did not anticipate any of these being my children's nicknames, but there you go. It's an organic thing.

My DH actually has Grumpy Chops on his birth certificate, but I call him Bill

There are names I like, but that I think might be limiting to the way that people viewed you as an adult. So I think of names that would allow me to use the name I like while they are a child, and then if my child does grow up and wanted to be 'default sensible adult' they could use their full name. It's sort of reverse engineering the nicknaming process.

There are also names that I like but would avoid because I don't like the way they will inevitably be shortened to, Melanie for example because I don't like Mel.

Finally, my name doesn't have any abbreviations or nicknames and I always wanted one, so there's partly me living vicariously too.

Oh, and I guess I mean 'shortening' when I say nickname

I agree.

Nicknames/abbreviations evolve over time, they aren't "given".

I find it weird that some people give their kids the short form of names that they don't actually like, like Archie but they hate the full name Archibald or Archer!

Totally agree op.

On a similar note, it's always struck me as po-faced when people say "we deliberately chose a name that can't be shortened".

All names can be. Or, at least lengthened to form the nickname!

It doesn't really bother me. I don't see the point if you don't like the name, though...

CrunchyMum My DD is Beatrice & we call her Bea

But I guess we didn't decide on Bea prebirth. It's just what she became! As well as Pop pop!

one of my dd's has a long 4 syllable name, lets say its Susanna (yes i know its 3 syllables). We call her Susanna but also call her Anna for short at times, we had intended to use Sue for short when we named her but Anna stuck instead.

Some names just naturally get shortened, and not always to what you think they will

Middle names are often related to cultural norms. From where I'm from, everyone has one middle name. You'll often have be named after a deceased relative but with their name as your middle name.