Unusual nn for Elisabeth?

[BarbaraManatee]

We quite like the name Elisabeth but can't agree on a nickname for it. Our surname begins with a B so that rules out several of them. We're not keen on overly cute/girly names. Plus I'm related to a Liz, an Eliza & a Lily...

Would it be too "out there" to call her Elis? It's a Welsh which I am spelling of Ellis & traditionally masculine but there was a female Brazilian singer called Elis Regina so I feel it's not completely without precedent...

It can also be traced back to being Biblical, which is one of the reasons we're looking at Elisabeth/Elizabeth in the first place. According to various baby name websites, Ellis is an anglicised form of Elias which is a Greek form of Elijah.

Plus, her middle name would most likely be Alice, so it would sound like an amalgamation of her first & middle names.

And, I like that it would sound similar to Emily Brontë's pseudonym with our surname, but probably not similar enough for anyone else to notice!

The only negative I can think of is people saying "but that's a boy's name". We got that occasionally after one of our DSs' was born & his name was most definitely masculine in the Bible but does sometimes get used for girls. The contrary side of me actually rather likes the idea of confusing people the other way round too...

[NataliaOsipova]

Sisi? Libby? Bet/Betty/Betsy/Bess/Beth?

[villainousbroodmare]

That's another thing that I've observed on this forum. I would have thought of Liz, for example, as a shortening of Elizabeth, and something like, I dunno, Tweet as a nickname. But on MN the two seem to be equated.

[SuperBeagle]

She'll get Liz/Lizzy regardless of what nicknames you try to make stick. It's the go-to, like Maddie for Madeleine and Lily for Lillian.

And I say that as an Elizabeth.

[PicaPau]

Elis Regina's is pronounced like air-lease with emphasis on the E, not like the surname Ellis.

[Sugarpiehoneyeye]

I know an Elizabeth called Zibby.

[Lemondrop99]

Elsie?

[Ontopofthesunset]

People on MN confuse nicknames, which do happen organically and are often limited to particular groups (Wiggles to the family, Trousers to your mates) and chosen shortenings. It's very common for people to choose to use Sam on a daily basis to refer to Samuel, though their own infant nickname for him might be Sam-Sam and at school later he might get called Samwich.

I do think the trend on here to find obscure shortenings or variants of common names slightly odd, though. If you're thinking of using Elisabeth, I'd assume you like it and at least one of its many short forms - Liz, Liza, Eliza, Elsie, Betty, Beth, Lizzie. Elis is strange because it's neither a historical nor a natural shortening of Elisabeth - the stress is all wrong and the pronunciation of the 's' is wrong. If you like Ellis, why not call her that (though I think it's a boys' name)?

[Ditsy1980]

I don't get this. If you like Elis call her Elis.
I understand working through possible nicknames and shortenings incase there are any awful ones. Or giving a full name but use the derivative when small - as PP said Benjy is cute for a child but an adult would probably prefer Ben so Benjamin covers all options.

[Mistoffelees]

You could go quite old-fashioned and nickname her Queenie

[Exercisejunkieforlife]

I also think that nick names just happen whereas you may be able to control 'shortenings'.

Our DD2 has a nickname and it is completely unrelated to her name .
DS and DD1 do not and their names are shortened by friends but I use their full names.

My nephew has a really strange nickname of 'mars bar' , (just outed self).

Lizzy
Libby
Lisbeth
Elis
Beth

There are so many options and it is a lovely name .

[Crumbelina]

I absolutely love Betty and the B surname wouldn't put me off. I love alliterative names as they're so strong.

[Yika]

Elis is lovely. It's true it doesn't sound like the beginning of elisabeth but it sounds pretty in its own right.

I also like Lise, Lisa, Lisbeth.

I think I like Elis the best. What about Elisa?

[FizzyGreenWater]

You don't get a choice on the nickname really!

Yes you could call her that from the off and it might stick and it might not, and then when she gets to 12 she might decide she's a LIZ and that's that. So be careful of giving a name where you don't like the most common short forms.

Elis doesn't really work very well from Elisabeth - the intonation is different, but it's not a terrible option.

Can't help thinking that if you're pondering now about how to work in a short form that isn't obvious, it might be better picking another name?

[7to25]

Cissie

[rocketman3]

How can a nickname be pre determined

[AuntieStella]

Because people tend to like the name variant their parents call them, and it often sticks. And it's perfectly normal to think about what you'll want to call them day to day as well as their full label.

So if you like a name that has many shortening, you choose the nn you will use. Most people will follow the parents lead.

If the DC prefers another, they'll sort it out themselves with their friends when they are school age.

How about Buffy?

[PlymouthMaid1]

I really don't get this think for deciding nicknames as they just develop on their own. Obviously don't pick first names which will attract an obviously awful nickname but what is wrong with waiting for one to come on its own?

[Qtipsrsweet]

Elis is lovely. I love it
I want to rename my DD now 🤣🤣

[kittytom]

There is nothing wrong or odd with wondering which short name (which is clearly what the OP means) to call an Elisabeth!

OP Elis is fine, but it might get shortened to Liz!

[millifiori]

Elis is lovely - elegant and a bit unusual.

[AConvivialHost]

We have an Elizabeth, and haven't found a nn that suits her yet - she's currently 6 months. Have tried Buffy, Beth, Libby - can't call her Liz/Lizzie as that's the dog's name 😁 The one that we seem to use most is Elz/Elzie. I suspect once she starts nursery/school, either she or her friends will pick the nn

[DaemonPantalaemon]

Call her Lilibet, like the Queen

A spectacularly silly suggestion, which shows that some people on this forum really don't seem to understand what a nickname is! As someone above said, a nickname is not always the short form of a name. The Queen is called Lilibet because, as a child, she could not pronounce her own name: Elizabeth came out Lilibet when she referred to herself, and it stuck as a nickname. Lilibet is a nickname that developed organically, it was not a pre-selected name that was chosen because it was a short form of Elizabeth.

[PitilessYank]

In my family we have used Bess as a nickname for Elizabeth.

And if your surname starts with a "B", that might be some nice alliteration, there.

[Mollie85]

I know a 20 year old Ellis (girl) who is a cool, arty surfer girl.

I like it, but then, Alice is also one of my favourite names so I may just like the sound.