Nicknames and Birth Certificates

[salmoneous]

If parents intend to name their kid something like Bill or Peggy, should they just go ahead and give them that name, or should they formally name them William or Margaret and use Bill and Peggy as nicknames.

 

[freckles and boo]

I have a seven-year-old Margaret who is nicknamed Meg. I think having a full name gives the child an option of picking a different nickname later. She can choose to go by Margaret, Meg, Maggie, Peggy, Margie, or whatever else she prefers as an adult. I feel the same way about William as a name. William, Will, Willy (ick), Bill, Billy, Wills, Liam, whatever... It is much more flexible. I also think nicknames look goofy on resumes.

 

[katerkat]

Give them the formal name and the choice!! My dad wanted to name me Katie. My birth certificate says "Kathryn." Good thing, because after I graduated high school, I switched to Kate. Which I guess I could have done from Katie as well, but I liked having the choice. (I briefly considered Ryn, too.)

 

[crzyred]

My father wanted to name me Michelle and call me Shelly. My mother said we would name me what we call me.

I have no idea how I feel about.

 

[Crankyshank]

I think it's more considerate of the child to give them an official formal name, even if it is never used.
My Father's name on his birth certificate is Ricky, after Ricky Nelson. His entire life he was called Rick or Ricky, and it's caused him countless amounts of aggravation as an adult because he keeps having to tell people his name is not Richard. Add in a difficult last name, and it's no end of fun
Dad has always maintained it would have been a lot easier to be named Eric (Rick Nelson's "official" name) or Richard, and go by Rick.

 

[Rachie0507]

We named our daughter Annie. Her grandmother is Anna and we wanted something slightly different but not Ann. She is seven now and her nickname is Ann! We felt Annie was appropriate as a legal first name even though it could be considered a nickname.

 

[Disney.Ears]

I think it's better to give the child a formal name. Because you don't necessarily know if they wanted to be called say, Chuckie, when they're trying to find a job or something. Employers might not take them seriously. Plus if you have a formal name you have a variety of nicknames to choose from.

 

[Beth76]

Give them the full name. Because for the rest of his/her life people will ask if that's his/her full name. Trust me. I'm Beth. Not Elizabeth. Not Bethany.

 

[MNFootballMommy]

Go with the formal name (just my 2 cents)

DH was given a 'nickname' for a name (think Billy/Danny/Stevie) and is constantly asked for his 'real' name when filling out official paperwork, etc. ("Is that your legal name, sir?" and not always nicely). He uses the shorter version at work (Bill/Dan/Steve).

Let the kid pick his/her own nickname. I, too, have a name that can be shortened and I have been through 'several' versions of my name. Sure, you will always find the teacher that INSISTS on calling you by your birth name since "that's what your parents named you." On the plus side, we almost always know it's junk mail when it comes addressed to William/Daniel/Steven!

Our families (and I) still call him by his given name, but I think things would have been easier for him officially and professionally with a more formal name. That being said, he would NEVER complain or change it as he feels that would be disrespectful to his parents.

 

[MomNeedsVacay]

My DD is Anibel...we mostly call her "Ani" , but when I'm angry with her...its Anibel.

 

[heath dog]

I am on the side of giving them a formal name so they can choose later. My DH and I wanted to name our son Xander but weren't sure if that was too trendy. So we did Alexander that way he could change it. So we call him Xan or Xander. The funny thing is his middle name is Maddox which we love but its probably anything but formal. Now his brothers name is Michael David which is about as formal as ya get.

 

[transparant]

I say give them the full name. My oldest is Richard - but he goes by Rick. I think it gives them the option of choosing.

 

[MNFootballMommy]

I am on the side of giving them a formal name so they can choose later. My DH and I wanted to name our son Xander but weren't sure if that was too trendy. So we did Alexander that way he could change it. So we call him Xan or Xander. The funny thing is his middle name is Maddox which we love but its probably anything but formal. Now his brothers name is Michael David which is about as formal as ya get.

I think Maddox would be considered a 'formal' name--it isn't a nickname, per se.

 

[RadioNate]

I have a seven-year-old Margaret who is nicknamed Meg. I think having a full name gives the child an option of picking a different nickname later. She can choose to go by Margaret, Meg, Maggie, Peggy, Margie, or whatever else she prefers as an adult. I feel the same way about William as a name. William, Will, Willy (ick), Bill, Billy, Wills, Liam, whatever... It is much more flexible. I also think nicknames look goofy on resumes.

What she said...only my Margaret is a Maggie and considerably younger than 7.

 

[Lintasare]

Give them the formal name and the choice!! My dad wanted to name me Katie. My birth certificate says "Kathryn." Good thing, because after I graduated high school, I switched to Kate. Which I guess I could have done from Katie as well, but I liked having the choice. (I briefly considered Ryn, too.)

My middle name is Kathryn and alot of my online friends call me Ryn. Heck I named my guitar player in Rockband Rýnn. She is so cool looking...tall, model thin with blue and purple dreads. Totally not me at all.

 

[nataliela]

I just found out that most people who have nicknames "Tre'" are most probably the third!!

Don't you hate the feeling when an 8 year old tells you something so simple and you could never figure it out for yourself!!

 

[Beth76]

My DH and I wanted to name our son Xander but weren't sure if that was too trendy. So we did Alexander that way he could change it.

We were going to do the same for our 2nd. DH really wanted Xander (as a nickname). But we ended up chosing Alexander for his middle name. He has a friend named Xander in his class right now too.

 

[imsorry]

My mother put Judy on my birth certificate. But I was baptized Judith.

So now it is very confusing: my driver's license has to be Judy because that is on my birth certificate. But just about everything else is Judith. Add to that some things have my middle initial and some don't: I have 4 different identities!

 

[Becky2005]

I don't know...it works to my advantage (or maybe disadvantage -- who knows).

All I know is my legal name is Becky and it was quite nice when in High School all the other Rebecca's were changing their names from Becky to Rebecca and then you had to add their last name to determine who was who & I was able to just stick with my Becky and have no issues.

It really hasn't been any issue other than I have no desire whatsoever to become Rebecca and just have to tell people when they fill out legal documents that Becky IS my legal name -- it's not short for anything.

My mom thought you should name them what you call them & we think that's hilarious because she didn't do that with my brother! He got a full name but is called a shortened version of it.

 

[mjkacmom]

We named our daughter Annie. Her grandmother is Anna and we wanted something slightly different but not Ann. She is seven now and her nickname is Ann! We felt Annie was appropriate as a legal first name even though it could be considered a nickname.

Here's a funny story - I wanted to name dd #3 after my grandmother, who everyone called Ann or Annie, but I loved the name Anna. I told her my plans, and she said "don't name her Anna - it's a horrible name - it's my real name, but I hate it!" Even my mother didn't know her name was actually Anna! We named her Anna, planned on calling her Annie eventually, but she insisted on Anna.