How did your pre-selected nickname for your kid work out?

[Anonymous]

My son is still too young to really tell (under 2) because we aren’t in school yet but we introduce him as his nickname and every single person in his life knows him by that. I don’t see how preschool or school will be any different? I don’t think he will even know his full name before preschool because no one has ever called him it? I don’t know why there’s always haters on these threads. I grew up with plenty of Katherines called Katie, plenty of boys who went by middle names because first name was dad’s name (including my own brother), etc, and people with nicknames completely unrelated to their actual name like Trey or Tripp for the 3rd, and none of this was ever a problem?

[Anonymous]

All 3 of my children have nicknames (diminutives actually). I love it! I'd always wanted a nickname myself, so I picked long, classic names so my kids would have options. We didn't consider a name if it didn't have nickname potential.

My 1st kid is called by her nickname 75% of the time, but enough people call her by her first name that it doesn't seem strange. She did ask her teacher and classmates to call her her nickname. School was resistant to it at first, which I found weird because her name is like Abigail/Abby (an obvious nickname). My 2nd and 3rd kids have never had anyone refer to them by their full name. Yesterday at the doctor they called out my 3rd daughter's name in the waiting room and I didn't even look up. Their names are less common and people prefer the nickname- like Wilhelmina/Willa.

[Anonymous]

Works just fine so far. We call him the “chosen” nn plus half a dozen others. Some people use his long name, kids and teachers at school made their own nn for him... all good. That’s the beauty of nicknames. I always wanted one so I’m glad DS has several to choose from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op again- how about something like Junior or Trey or Sonny? Anyone have luck with those?

Generally I think these names are widely accepted when the kids are little and then it ends in high school or college. Basically it works when they’re little kids but all the guys I knew who were Jr or Trey switched to their real name in college. I think it feels too cutesy to have people you meet as an adult call you a name that’s basically a diminutive of your dad. These became family nicknames only.

[Anonymous]

My niece was to be Ellie and never Elinor, but now as a teenager, she’s always gone by her full name.

And DS19 was always going to be (a name like) Christian and was until a HS coach called him Chris and the teammates and classmates from then on to include college friends only call him Chris.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op again- how about something like Junior or Trey or Sonny? Anyone have luck with those?

I've never met anyone called those things in my life but I'd guess they're even less likely to stick. Who is going to introduce themselves to people as Junior or Sonny?

[Anonymous]

I don't think our son knew his "real" name for the longest time -- he was always referred to as his nickname (think JG or TJ); our daughter prefers her nickname and her school actually changed her record to reflect that. I think as kids get older they have the choice of their preferred name and go through phases or even preferences with close family / friends verse strangers so if you have a long name it's for those you are not close to but others such as family will always use your nickname as a term of affection. JMHO

[Anonymous]

My Charles is a Charlie. My parents are in their 70s and both have nicknames similar to Rick/Richard and Betsy/Elizabeth. Neither has ever used their full name and both hate the other nicknames like Duck, Richie, Liz, etc.
My husband also has a nickname and I’ve never heard anyone use his full name.

As an adult nicknames are great because it helps you screen calls and e-mails from people who don’t actually know you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only thing I would really be wary of is if there’s a nickname you hate that’s associated with the name you like. So, if your son is Daniel but you hate Dan for example, I would steer clear of those names. You just never know.

I think if you pick a completely random nickname like Birdie it’s very likely that your kid starts using Elizabeth in school and Birdie becomes a name only mom and dad use. Even siblings tend to use the standard school name so people know who they’re talking about.

+1 to this - my 10 year old has started asking people at school to call him a shorter version of his name, which I suppose was inevitable, but maybe it won't stick. I will say that I didn't think I would feel this strongly about it when I gave him the name. We'll see where it ends up.

His younger brother got a name that is very hard to shorten.

[Anonymous]

We ended up not really using the nickname at home. Grandparents and aunts use it but no one else does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op again- how about something like Junior or Trey or Sonny? Anyone have luck with those?

Generally I think these names are widely accepted when the kids are little and then it ends in high school or college. Basically it works when they’re little kids but all the guys I knew who were Jr or Trey switched to their real name in college. I think it feels too cutesy to have people you meet as an adult call you a name that’s basically a diminutive of your dad. These became family nicknames only.

Hmmm... I've met adult Treys and Tripps. Maybe it's more acceptable in the South.

[Anonymous]

We did not preselect a nickname for our DD, even though her name lends itself to nicknames easily, because we think they should be organic. She now goes by a nn that we all fell into naturally, to the point that she does not like when people call her anything else (whether her full name or a shortened version of her nickname) but I sense that’s a phase. I like that she’ll have options as she gets older, to go by her current nn which is very sweet and suits her well, or to go by her full name or a different nn.

So I’m happy with our choice not to preselect. I do hope she one day allows me to call her by her full name because I’m fond of it, but it’s up to her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op again- how about something like Junior or Trey or Sonny? Anyone have luck with those?

Generally I think these names are widely accepted when the kids are little and then it ends in high school or college. Basically it works when they’re little kids but all the guys I knew who were Jr or Trey switched to their real name in college. I think it feels too cutesy to have people you meet as an adult call you a name that’s basically a diminutive of your dad. These became family nicknames only.

Hmmm... I've met adult Treys and Tripps. Maybe it's more acceptable in the South.

... What does Tripp mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is Veronica and her nickname is Vera (VEH-RA) When she was a baby, Vera seemed to fit her better, but in preschool she wanted to be Veronica. That held until 1st grade when there was a Victoria in her class and they were always getting them confused. Then she went back to Vera and that stuck. She’s in 5th grade and is still going by Vera. Not sure what she’ll do in the future!

I can't figure out how to say this. Not Veer-a? Because VEH-RA seems impossible for me to pronounce.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter is Veronica and her nickname is Vera (VEH-RA) When she was a baby, Vera seemed to fit her better, but in preschool she wanted to be Veronica. That held until 1st grade when there was a Victoria in her class and they were always getting them confused. Then she went back to Vera and that stuck. She’s in 5th grade and is still going by Vera. Not sure what she’ll do in the future!

I can't figure out how to say this. Not Veer-a? Because VEH-RA seems impossible for me to pronounce.

The Ver sounds like Bear but with a V