How To Stop A Nickname?

One of my top three names has the potential for the nickname [name]Mary[/name]. I loved the name but then I met a [name]Mary[/name] in my class and now when I hear the name it has bad implications for me.

This also reminds me of Twilight. [name]Bella[/name] names her daughter [name]Renesmee[/name], but her family insists on calling her [name]Nessie[/name].

Is there a solution?

I don’t like nn’s very much and I always refer to my daughter [name]Jacquelyn[/name] by her full name but her friends call her [name]Jac[/name]! I never imagined that nn when she was born, however she is happy with that nn.

It can be very embarrassing telling people over and over that the child’s name is not (nn) it is fn. If you feel that you can handle the pressure of correcting all new people that is okay, but if you will tire of it think of another name.

Of course, in the end it will be up to your child to stop or accept nn’s. However, that doesn’t mean you have to refer to your child by their nn.

Good luck and hope you find a name that feels right.

I like the name [name]Genevieve[/name], but I HATE the nickname [name]Gen[/name] or [name]Genny[/name]. If someone ever calls my daughter that, I am going to teach her to say “No, my name is [name]Genevieve[/name]” in a very sweet way!

Well, you can always do what my parents did and come up with a different nn right off the bat. My name is [name]Katharine[/name], but my dad hated the name [name]Kathy[/name]. So, he insisted that they only ever call me [name]Katie[/name] so that no one would ever call me [name]Kathy[/name]. However, that had poor implications as well. Since they only ever called me [name]Katie[/name] and only ever introduced me with that name, they might as well have named me [name]Katie[/name] and not [name]Katharine[/name]. I, of course, have never liked [name]Katie[/name] and it took me years to get people to call me [name]Katharine[/name] (family and childhood firends still won’t though). So, I don’t know that this would be my recommendation, but it is an option.

With my daughter, we introduce her with her fn and also our chosen nn. So, that could be an option similar to what my parents did and the other suggestions of kindly saying that she does not go by “[name]Mary[/name].” It gives other people an option of a nn, but one you would be okay with.

Of course, think about how much work it might be to stop the nn and then determine if the name is worth it to you. And don’t forget that your daughter may decide that she wants to be a “[name]Mary[/name].” If she does, then you probably will never stop that nn.

Thank you for your advice. I’ll find a nn from the fn that I can live with.

For this name with the potential nickname [name]Mary[/name], is [name]Mary[/name] actually the most intuitive nickname? When people get nicknames from other people, it’s usually because their name is so long and/or familiar, that everyone calls everyone they know with that full name that specific nickname - like [name]Sue[/name] for [name]Susan[/name] or [name]Dan[/name] for [name]Daniel[/name] or [name]Ed[/name] for [name]Edward[/name] or [name]Jess[/name] for [name]Jessica[/name]. I cannot think of anyone I know with a nickname of [name]Mary[/name] or anyone with a name including [name]Mary[/name] for which [name]Mary[/name] is implied or suggested as a nickname. It seems that one is nipped in the bud, especially if you insist on another nickname or her full name off the bat, and then she takes over from there.

I SOOOO agree! [name]Genevieve[/name] is on my list as well, but I do not want the [name]Gen[/name]/[name]Genny[/name] nn. If she were to use a nickname, I would want [name]Evie[/name] or [name]Viv[/name], but I’m not sure that it would stick as she got older.

My moms name is [name]Jennifer[/name] and she HATED when people call her [name]Jenny[/name]. she is jen or jennifer. and my name is jessica and i want to hit people when they call me jessie. im jes or jessica. my mom wanted to name my little brother andrew but didnt want people to call him andy. i think that when your younger you dont care about nicknames. but if it really bothers you, give her a diffrent nickname. Like my daughter [name]Kiele[/name] (pronouced Keel-e) people used to like to call her kiel. which sounded like kill to me and i hate it. so i gave her, her own nickname. kiwi. they were her favorite fruit and its adorable. and now she corrects people. you cant stop people from making stupid names. they do it with everything (my maiden name was reno and people used to call me rhino). so i dont think you can really do anything about nicknames. after time your child will learn what they want.