Nicknames

[penguiny7.livejournal.com]

I've seen several people on here ask questions about nicknames before, so I was going to post a wonderful link about nicknames for anyone who was interested... but it was a geocities site, and geocities is no longer available. D:  I'm very distressed!  So I thought instead I would just give you all of the information I can remember about some types of English nicknames.

 

When the Normans came to England they brought a lot of Latinate names.  The Anglo-Saxons couldn't pronounce Rs very well, so they changed the Rs in names to other consonants to make nicknames.  Examples:

Mary-->Molly
Sarah-->Sally, Sadie
Margaret-->Madge, Meg, Mamie
Caroline-->Callie, Caddie
Dorothy-->Dolly, Dodie
Harry-->Hal
 

Similarly, some nicknames come from Rs being dropped.  Examples:

 Florence-->Flossie
Frances-->Fanny
Dorothy-->Dottie

In the Middle Ages it became common to alter the first letter of a nickname to make a new nickname.  Examples:

Mary-->Molly-->Polly
Margaret-->Meg-->Peg
William-->Will-->Bill
Robert-->Rob-->Bob
Richard-->Rick-->Dick

Also in the Middle Ages, a term of endearment was to say "Mine" before the name.  In some cases the "Mine" was dropped, but the N was left to form a new nickname.  Examples:

Oliver-->Noll
Edward-->Ned
Abel-->Nab
Anne-->Nan, Nancy
Helen, Ellen, Eleanor-->Nell

Another form of nickname used in the Middle Ages was adding "kin" to the end of a name.  Many of these nicknames aren't used anymore, but some were altered slightly and are still in use (and some are now surnames, I guess).  Examples:

John-->Johnkin, Jenkin-->Jack
Henry-->Hankin-->Hank
Robert-->Robin
Nicholas-->Colin
Charles-->Chuck
Peter-->Peterkin, Perkin
Walter-->Watkin
Thomas-->Tompkin

I hope you found this interesting, and I'm so bummed that that website is no longer up!

Comments

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

That really explained a few nicknames I never understood. Like Richard to Dick and William to Bill. My husband and I were even talking about the Richard one not too long ago we joked that someone must have known a Richard they didn't like, LOL:)

[waitingonsunday.livejournal.com]

Very interesting! Thanks for sharing.

[spaceandclouds.livejournal.com]

That's really interesting! Like the first poster said, Bill for William suddenly makes sense now. As does Jack for John...sort of.
Really very interesting. Thanks!

[lilacmermaid.livejournal.com]

I love this! Thank you so much!

[lipsty.livejournal.com]

Thanks! This is great.

[cybeleadam.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It's very interesting for people like me who often thought English nicknames were very weird.

[cremepuff.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Got a lot of interesting insight out of this, especially on the whole Mary-Molly-Polly debate!

[sweetest-asylum.livejournal.com]

OMG thank you!
i have always wondered how Peggy became a nickname for Margaret!