I’ve really had a crush on the nn [name]Nick[/name] lately, but [name]Nicholas[/name] doesn’t work brilliantly with our S surname. Then I was thinking about reading some Dickens and it occurred to me that [name]Nickleby[/name] has a very nice sound and would be another way to get to [name]Nick[/name]. But I usually like more traditional names, [name]Nickleby[/name] seems very out there to me. What do you think? Is it usable? Does it seem pretentious?
Thanks in advance, lovely berries:)
Being honest-- it seems like the worst kind of pretentious. The try-hard, but falls flat, kind. I think nickel-bee would be very hard for a young boy to carry, too.
Ways to get to [name]Nick[/name]:
[name]Dominic[/name]
[name]Nico[/name]
Copernicus
[name]Nicolai[/name]
Niccolo
Rennick
[name]Yannick[/name]
Sound-wise I find it more cutesy than pretentious like [name]Kirby[/name] and the like.
I think [name]Dominic[/name] is really great though.
I agree with blade that nickleby is a little pretentious. [name]Blade[/name] has some great suggestions though. From her suggestions I really like [name]Dominic[/name] and Niccolo.
I really don’t like it. The suggestion of [name]Dominic[/name] is a really good one
In theory, I kind of like it…I love all things Dickensian. That said, I do think in actuality it’s a bit pretentious, and probably a difficult name for a little boy or teenager to carry.
Any interest in [name]Nicodemus[/name]? I love the “nickle” part of [name]Nickleby[/name], but woah it’s intensely Dickensian… Unless you’re hoping that he’ll earn his keep as a magician, child-assistant to [name]David[/name] Copperfield?
I quite like [name]Nickleby[/name]!
Sorry, I hate [name]Nickleby[/name]. It sounds a lot like Nickelback to me and I can’t imagine any kid would want to be associated with that band.
I have to respectfully disagree with everyone, I’m afraid. I like [name]Nickleby[/name] and have had a bit of a name crush on it since re-reading it and watching the [name]Charlie[/name] Hunnam/[name]Anne[/name] Hathaway/[name]Christopher[/name] [name]Plummer[/name] version on film ([name]Plummer[/name]'s brilliant in that, btw 
). First of all, it’s different, but it’s not completely out there and it isn’t trendy. This is a good thing. Secondly, I don’t think it’s pretentious at all. Here on Nameberry we’ve seen Thackaray, [name]Bronte[/name], [name]Wolf[/name] and [name]Emerson[/name] all used and, while they’re not everyone’s style, no one bats an eye. [name]Nickleby[/name] is another literary name that fits right in. Last, if his nickname is [name]Nick[/name], that’s probably what he’ll go by as a teenager if he doesn’t think it’s cool to carry a Dickensian name.
So to sum it all up… No, you’re not crazy. 
I think it sounds wonderful! and adaptable too!
[name]Nickleby[/name] is a winner for me!
I can’t help but think of Nickleback as well 
Yuck! Aside from that, [name]Nickleby[/name] sounds very pretentious and silly.
I’ve been toying with the same idea as you - I love [name]Nicholas[/name], but we have many friends by that name already, so it’s out for me. I think [name]Nickleby[/name] is adorable, and there are plenty of non-threatening nicknames like [name]Nick[/name] and [name]Nico[/name] so in theory it works for me. If he ever has difficulties because of the full name it’s easy enough to go by something more common. I’m surprised so many people think it sounds pretentious, especially in the light of names like [name]Emerson[/name] and Thackery that a previous poster mentioned, but I suppose I hadn’t tested it at all to get other people’s opinions and maybe got a little caught up in my name crush!
But then, I still think it’s better than some of the alternatives suggested, and I’m not convinced it can’t be used.
I don’t think I’d call it pretentious, but there are better “[name]Nick[/name]” names out there. [name]Nikolai[/name], as suggested above, is one of my favorites.
I like it, it would be adorable on a little kid and could work on a teenage too
My first thought was “Is she a big Nickleback fan or something?” After reading the whole post I see that you are not but I think a lot of people may make that association.
It’s a surname so no. There are plenty of real first names to get the nickname [name]Nick[/name]
Hmm, a mixed bag. I definitely see it as similar to [name]Willoughby[/name], as mentioned by lori johnson, literary but not completely tied to the book. It seems like it’s too Dickensian for some people (and I’m not a huge Dickens fan at all, so wouldn’t want it to come across that way, I just like the sound). Basically, I had the exact same opinion on it as sis (I love the [name]Charlie[/name] Hunnam adaptation!).
[name]Even[/name] more worrying is the Nickleback association, urgh. I’m not sure a lot of people would make that link though, they only had one hit a long time ago in the UK. Also don’t think the nickel connection would mean much here.
Thanks (especially blade) for all the other suggestions for [name]Nick[/name] names (excuse the pun), but I’m not sure any are quite right. I like [name]Nico[/name], Niccolo, [name]Nicolai[/name] but feel like they would be even more pretentious for us to use. [name]Dominic[/name] is fine, but too popular for me (top 200), and more dated than classic in feel. & surely Copernicus is way, way more unusable than [name]Nickleby[/name]?
Also renrose: [name]Nickleby[/name] seems very similar to [name]Rafferty[/name] in your sig, from my perspective. [name]Both[/name] surnames originally, and whilst I normally dislike sns as fns, I’m not sure how much use a sn has to have in the first spot for it to be deemed a ‘real’ name; seems a bit arbitrary.
Thanks again, everyone! I think it’s a guilty pleasure for now, but perhaps we may feel very bold in the future?
@caroline, you are definitely right- Copernicus was way farther out there than [name]Nickelby[/name]. And it ends in an S!
I think [name]Nickleby[/name] is completely tied to the book, since I don’t know of people who actually have this surname.
I will also just mention that if I received a resume with [name]Beckett[/name] or [name]Thackeray[/name] across the top, I’d probably assume that these were the kind of parents who would call me up and complain if [name]Junior[/name] didn’t get a raise.