If you like the long version of a name but don’t like the short forms that much would that rule out the name for you?
I love the name [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] but don’t really like any of the nicknames attached to it. [name_f]Livvy[/name_f] is ok and I dislike [name_f]Liv[/name_f]/Oli.
Alternatively I think [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is very pretty but I prefer [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] if I’m just comparing the long versions of the name. However I think the nicknames [name_f]Lottie[/name_f] and [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] are great - both very cute and much nicer that the [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] nicknames [name_f]IMO[/name_f].
In this case, I would encourage you to go with [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]. [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] would be beautiful! That way, you could have the nicknames of [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], and the full form of [name_f]Olivia[/name_f]. Best of both worlds
Oh, also… my favorite nn for [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] is [name_f]Via[/name_f]. Not sure if you have considered it?
[name_f]Olivia[/name_f] for me is not a type of name where people resort to nicknames. The two [name_f]Olivia[/name_f]'s I know always went by just [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], never [name_f]Liv[/name_f], [name_f]Livvy[/name_f] or Oli. [name_f]Do[/name_f] you want her to have a nickname? If so maybe you could use her middle name as her nickname.
Similar to the previous comment, I think [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] is a name that won’t necessarily be shortened. [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] might get called [name_f]Liv[/name_f] by close friends, but most people will probably call her [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] unless told otherwise. (I’ve taught several [name_f]Olivia[/name_f]'s, and for the most part called them all [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], even one who went by Livi.)
If it was a name like [name_f]Jessica[/name_f], where [name_u]Jessie[/name_u] is naturally shortened it would be different. But I think [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] would be fine.
I like both names though! [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] is one of my favorites, but my husband isn’t a fan so it’s not on our list.
I know a lot of school-age Olivias and they are all called [name_f]Liv[/name_f]/[name_f]Livvy[/name_f]/Oli, even if just informally. I actually think [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] could be less likely to be shortened - only 2 syllables vs. the 4 syllables in [name_f]Olivia[/name_f]. But I agree that [name_f]Lottie[/name_f] and [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] are cute! (I’m partial to [name_f]Livvy[/name_f], too).
In the end, I think the name that you love both in short and in full should win, particularly if it seems inevitable that it will be shortened to that nickname. For the record, I think [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] won’t habitually be shortened to [name_f]Livy[/name_f] or [name_f]Liv[/name_f], maybe just on occasion for the purpose of convenience. It’s such a pretty name, I think it wouldn’t be difficult to just call her [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] and have others do the same.
Personally, I consider nicknames a lot in my favorites, because I want my children to have a designated nickname. Growing up, I never had a nickname that stuck, and I always regretted that. To me, nicknames are a sign of affection and appreciation, and I tend to nickname a lot of my close friends, so I always wished I had an affectionate nickname.
I agree that if you’re choosing between two names that you really like, it’s probably a better choice to choose the name you like both the formal and nickname possibilities the most. I had a similar dilemma when trying to decide between [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] and [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] for the baby boy I’m currently pregnant with. If just looking at the formal names, I do like [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] slightly more than [name_m]Alexander[/name_m]. However, I’m not really a fan of any of the traditional [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] nicknames. I could have lived with [name_m]Bastian[/name_m] if I had to, and I actually did quite like the idea of [name_m]Buzz[/name_m] (which came from a mispronunciation of [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] from our daughter), but there was no guarantee that [name_m]Buzz[/name_m] would stick. On the other hand, I love almost all of the [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] nicknames – the only ones I would say I truly dislike are [name_m]Al[/name_m] and [name_u]Lex[/name_u] – so it just made more sense to go with the name that had the better nicknames in our minds, especially since we’re a nickname-y family.
If I really disliked the nickname and if I couldn’t see a way around it, yes, it would put me off.
For example, I think [name_f]Flora[/name_f] would get shortened to “[name_f]Flo[/name_f]” in Germany, which I absolutely despise; the only way I could possibly avoid that nickname (and the chance that she wants to be called [name_f]Flo[/name_f] later on) is to call her by a different nickname from an early age.
My hope would be that she identifies with that nickname, that people call her by it and that her friends will simply catch on rather than coming up with one themselves.
I think with [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], it won’t automatically get shortened as there is more than one go-to nickname, however, I don’t think you can expect people to call her [name_f]Livy[/name_f] but never [name_f]Liv[/name_f], the two are just too closely related (same as [name_u]Jessie[/name_u] and [name_u]Jess[/name_u] or [name_f]Emmy[/name_f] and [name_f]Em[/name_f]).
Nickname options matter a lot to me, I’m a natural nicknamer so I want to have options that I like. Usually I don’t mind the go to options, but if I do then I would scrap the name unless it was either something I could deal with (e.g. [name_f]Ellie[/name_f] from [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f], not my choice of nickname, but not unbearable) or something I felt I could combat with a different nickname from an early age e.g. [name_m]Edward[/name_m] nn [name_u]Teddy[/name_u] not [name_m]Ed[/name_m] (and being ok with [name_m]Ed[/name_m] if it happened).
I also dislike [name_f]Liv[/name_f] and [name_u]Ollie[/name_u] for [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], which would rule out the name for me. I actively dislike the name [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], but [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] and [name_f]Lottie[/name_f] are more appealing to me (still not huge on it but that’s just personal taste).
But for me ‘no nickname’ or just seeing what happens really aren’t options, I want to think of the possible nicknames my child might get and I want to like the majority of them - and I would plan on using at least one of them. [name_f]Alice[/name_f] is my front runner because I’m confident she will be ‘[name_m]Just[/name_m] [name_f]Alice[/name_f]’ or [name_f]Alsie[/name_f], which is my chosen nickname. I don’t like [name_u]Allie[/name_u], but I could live with it and would hopefully head it off with [name_f]Alsie[/name_f] anyway.
I like [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] but the only nickname for it I like is [name_f]Libby[/name_f].
I think [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is pretty and elegant but I go the other way - I don’t like [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] and that puts me off [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]. If you like it though it’s certainly worthy of consideration.
I do consider it. If I don’t like it’s natural nn, I wouldn’t use it. If you pick a name that has a nn you don’t like…you have to be diligent on correcting people. For me, it’s not worth the battle. My oldest daughter is [name_u]Delaney[/name_u]…I like [name_u]Laney[/name_u] and [name_u]Lane[/name_u] for her nn…but someone at school tried calling her [name_f]Dee[/name_f] or [name_f]DeeDee[/name_f]…and it made my skin crawl. Lol. She didn’t respond to it though and it has since stopped.
Nicknames are pretty important to me, as someone who more or less grew up without one. If I didn’t like the obvious nickname for the name, I probably wouldn’t use it. A good example for me is the name [name_m]Gabriel[/name_m]. I think it’s a lovely name, but I can’t stand the nickname [name_m]Gabe[/name_m], so I’d never use it. On the other hand, I prefer [name_u]Theo[/name_u]/[name_f]Thea[/name_f] as nicknames for [name_m]Theodore[/name_m]/[name_f]Theodora[/name_f] rather than [name_u]Teddy[/name_u], but I’m not totally opposed to [name_u]Teddy[/name_u] and I think it’d be easy enough to push [name_u]Theo[/name_u]/[name_f]Thea[/name_f] as the nickname. So I think if you love [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] enough, you could be clear that she would be addressed as [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] or your preferred short form. The only thing is that she might prefer to use a short form that you don’t like later on.
I always take nicknames and initials into account. I love the name [name_f]Rose[/name_f], but would never use it as a first name, because I hate the nickname [name_f]Rosie[/name_f]. I love the name [name_f]Regina[/name_f], but I hate [name_u]Reggie[/name_u] and [name_f]Gina[/name_f] as nicknames. If I know that a nickname I hate is going to be used, that it’s absolutely going to be used, then I won’t use the full name as a first name.
With some names, certain nicknames are inevitable. The beauty of [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is that [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] and [name_f]Lottie[/name_f] are all quite distinct in style, and people don’t, or shouldn’t, randomly call someone who is known as [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] by [name_f]Lottie[/name_f], or vice versa. [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] can easily be used in full, but I think that at least some of her friends may use [name_f]Liv[/name_f] or [name_f]Livvy[/name_f], and she herself may like those short forms. I personally adore [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]. [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] is stunning. [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is pretty, too.
It depends on how you want to call her. You can call her [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] and call her [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], with no nickname. If you plan on using a nickname, then [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is the best. I would choose [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] with no nickname because I am not a fan of [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]. But generally speaking, I would not drop a name off my list because I don’t like any nickname. I really hate all nicknames of [name_f]Maria[/name_f] and yet, my daughter is [name_f]Maria[/name_f] going by her full name. I would advice you to choose the name you wouldn’t regret.
I am going through a similar conundrum trying to name my baby boy. For many names my DH and I like either the nickname, or the full name, rarely both. We like [name_m]Phillip[/name_m], but not [name_u]Phil[/name_u], [name_m]Antonio[/name_m] but not [name_u]Tony[/name_u], etc.
I think it really depends how much you dislike the nicknames. If you really cannot stand them then maybe avoid the name altogether. With [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] though I don’t think it’s naturally shortened to anything, using full “[name_f]Olivia[/name_f]” all the time seems perfectly normal. If it were a name like [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] and you disliked all the nicknames I probably wouldn’t use it, cause it is always shortened, but with [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] I think you will be ok. Both [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] and [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] are beautiful, I guess it depends on what you want to call your daughter at home, if [name_f]Lottie[/name_f], [name_u]Charlie[/name_u] or [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] feel more like her.
