Community Chat

[Carmie]

My husband's real name is a nick name.

One of his friend's real name is Ricky.  

This is not new.  It has been going on for years.

[Josmad]

It is nothing new. My daughter is 35 years old and her name is Katie Beth.

[Jk9]

My name isn't a formal name but the nickname.  I never liked that.

[On It]

@occasionalrain Names are tricky. We just had a recent thread here about changing our names if we could.

[occasionalrain]

When parents choose a name for their baby, seldom do both parents prefer the same name, so there's no guarantee the child will like the name they were given. At least choosing the formal version gives the child a few options.

I sometimes hear that a mother wanted a cute name for her baby. What's cute for a baby, isn't cute for an adult, especially if they want to pursue a profession where having confidence and trust matters. An actor named Billy or Suzy is fine, but not a surgeon. 

[Scooby Doo]

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@ROMARY wrote:

Several years or so ago, we ran into someone who named their baby son 'Bear'.  

I've wondered if Bear was or is an actual name?  And how he feels about his name right now.

Any thoughts?

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My 50ish neighbor's legal first name is Bear.   He's not native american, but he is the size of a bear.

[sugarbee]

I was adopted and my parents gave me a very beautiful nickname that I used through school and beyond.  I only used my legal name for just that, legal signatures.  Going through a divorce I legally changed my name to my nickname that I loved and reverted back to my maiden name.  Your name is the only thing you truly own from birth to death and it defines you as a person.

[Tinkrbl44]

I sometimes wonder about the names parents give.  I still can't believe Gwyneth Paltrow named her daughter Apple.  Seriously ... a fruit?   

[CANDLEQUEEN]

We named our firstborn Jennifer, not to be shortened to Jenny or Jen. I made it very clear to all teachers and friends and family-it was Just Jennifer.

She is now in her 40's and she never has been called a nickname..I think if you like nicknames-great, but I didn't want that for her. Had she gotten older and said  I like Jen, then so be it, but as a child I wanted her to be called by her name, not a shortened version of it..  

[occasionalrain]

I prefer and  use my formal given name, but don't mind much when someone calls me by a nickname, maybe because it seldom happens.