Mostly only like ‘nicknames’ as names

[Happytimes83]

Our name list for our baby currently consists of; Effie, Callie, Immy (I don’t mind Imogen as a name out of the ones made into the longer version), also quite like Sienna though not entirely sure id actually want to use so maybe I should remove it from our list,

But I’d just prefer to name my daughter what I’d actually call them, a ‘formal’ name seems so pointless & we also want a name that’s relatively easy to spell although agree you could mix Y’s and IE’s up on to them by accident, though we don’t have issue with our sons name Charlie.

Are these names a problem as adults?

Charlie is very popular so people usually think it’s a stand alone name - they don’t always assume it’s short for Charles.

I think most people WOULD think Charlie was short for Charlotte or Charles!

Nickname full names are normal for this generation. Things like Katherine or Timothy stand out far more as unusual than short nicknames, and that will carry into their generation as adults.

Those are shortened versions - not nicknames! Just use the short version if you prefer it.

Love your suggestion of Iona op, that’s beautiful and a stand alone name.

Considering Charlie is the 9th most popular and Charles is the 86th most popular for boys I doubt many would assume it. I think most would be surprised to hear a young Charles.

Those 2 sentences contradict each other (assuming that by saying Iona is lovely that you're endorsing it as a name choice).

I agree totally with your first statement. It's a PITA.

I also agree with your second statement too - it is a lovely name, but Iona is definitely a name people have to spell out and which is open to mispronunciation.

I know of one Iona who was i-oh-na (is that like the Scottish island?), one who was yon-na, and one who was yoh-na. And all 3 had to spell it for people.

Callie is fine. I'm not so sold on Effie - it's very insubstantial.

Sally is very similar to Callie but more of an established name.

Never heard any other pronunciation of Iona other than the same as the Island. Maybe some of the other people had seen the name written down but didn't know how it was pronounced.

A girl at school was called Sine and I honestly thought it was the same as the mathematical term, not Sheena!

I'd be the same with some Irish or Welsh names.

Love this!

I think the HMRC test should replace the High Court Judge/[insert other aspirational -responsible job] test for whether a name is suitable for a grown-up.

Nothing sums up the mundane reality of adulthood like dealing with HMRC.

While I personally love classic Charles, it has just dropped out the Top 100 after hundreds of years whereas Charlie remains Top 20. I know a few toddler Charlie’s and it is their given name. I’ve only ever meet older men called Charles and women in their twenties or older known as Charlie - all the younger girls seem to be the full Charlotte or Lottie.

I agree with others though that of the OP’s choices Callie seems the least like a nn. Maybe as similar sounding Hallie is fairly well used in its own right. Immy is definitely nn territory, Effie could go either way as it is now increasing in popularity.

Our first child would have been called Iona if it was a girl! But in hindsight if they marry someone with an object for a surname and they took it, it could work out funny, that’s the only reason we’ve doubted it more this time..

We like names that can’t easily be shortened, aren’t long or hard to spell, but also sound quite cute as babies but also acceptable as adults, guess that explains the rise of the Charlie’s/Archie’s etc. Both me & DH have names that can’t really be shortened and both like our names and they are easy to spell/haven’t dated badly, though DH name is crazy popular these days a top 10 for 20 years now, but wouldn’t have been in the early 80’s so he’s at least a trailblazer even if every other kid in supermarket has his name now.

Guess we can’t predict that easily now what will age badly out of our current ideas unless we go for a super popular option.

And to top it off it's not even the conventional spelling of the nickname ffs

What is this awful “nickname” being discussed, I seem to of missed it? Sometimes names are just bad don’t forget! I for one hate my middle name, but I don’t need to tell anyone that, just too old fashioned for me!

I wouldn’t disregard a name based on her changing her surname at marriage. It’s not 1950.

It's not the fact it's a nn per se but i think Immy/Effie are a bit blah which (a) makes it hard for people to remember and (b) i think it's nice to have a name that has a bit of character about it.

Charlie/Callie are better as they have consonants so people will hear what it is. I know a Florence/Effie. Fwiw i think Imogen is a beautiful name

I called my son a long name and only ever call him the short version (though he’s a baby so that may change!) Both names are very unusual and the long version in particular is generally mispronounced by doctors and so on. That said, my daughter has a top 100 name which is also frequently mispronounced and misspelt!

If you like the long version, I’d go with that. If you don’t, I think Effie and Callie are both acceptable names in their own rights - I couldn’t have told you what Effie even was sort for before opening this thread. Immy I do think people will assume Imogen.

Ive taught many a little Charlie/charley and not one has been Charles, though the girls have often been Charlotte.

I've heard of Callie as a full name but not the other two, and personally I wouldn't use Callie if you already have a child whose name begins with C.

If you like that kind of name, some others that have a longer history of being established of names in their own right would include:

Milly
Molly
Polly
Katie
Abbie
Annie
Ellie
Evie (fairly similar to Effie!)
Hallie
Frankie
Rosie

There's a big surge in my area with hyphenated names with Mae/Mai or Jae/Jai pronounced May and Jay - just why???

@Happytimes83 I'd rather not say my name and spelling for fear of outing myself

If you have no intention of ever using the long version, then don't feel obliged to put it on the BC. Immy and Effie seem very much like diminutives of other names.

I know the parents of an Alex, who regret not having given him the option of Xander.

Iona and Iris aren't that popular, but Ada and Esme are. They all seem more like names than your 'nickname' ones.

I have an Effie, and both Callie and Immy were on my list as well - so we have very similar taste in names!

No one has ever asked me what Effie is short for (other than on here) so I don’t think there is an assumption that it has to be a nickname for something. I’m obviously biased because I used one of them, but I think the names you have suggested all work fine for adults.

Iona is lovely and to worry about her marrying someone with a surname that didn’t work with it is overthinking a bit.

I felt very strongly about naming my child what my child was going to be called. I hate the idea of a diminutive name and a formal name on the birth certificate. It’s just a personal preference.

Go with the nickname as the actual name on the BC if that’s what you want to call them.
My second has a ‘nickname’ as his name and I’m sooooo glad we didn’t put the full name on his birth certificate. He’s been in hospital recently and it’s been so much nicer all the doctors and nurses just knowing his actual name - would have been so annoying to have to keep saying ‘he’s known as …’ to every person who met him. Same when he goes to school. Basically I’m not going to spend all my time saying ‘he’s known as …’

I don’t see why it matters really. If you put Immy on the birth certificate, and in future she decides she’d rather be called Imogen, then she can call herself Imogen! You don’t have to use the name on your birth certificate.