I’m brand new here and I actually made an account just to get help with this. My name is [name_u]Whitney[/name_u] and I have never really felt that it fit me. In fact, I feel a little self conscious about it. I’m 32 years old, but I have social anxiety, so I’ve always been very shy and soft spoken. I feel like my name is more suited to a bubbly, peppy type person, who probably used to be a cheerleader, haha.
A lot of my family calls me “[name_u]Whit[/name_u]”, but that’s not really better in my opinion. I don’t mind family calling me by my given name, but I wish I had something different to introduce myself as to new people. My husband and I are thinking about moving to the opposite coast in the next few years, which would be a perfect time to start going by a different name.
I don’t want to just choose a random new name, but I can’t really think of nicknames for [name_u]Whitney[/name_u]. I’ve entertained the idea of going by my middle name, [name_f]Marie[/name_f]. It’s not my favorite, but it may be better than Whitney.
Nickname suggestions I have received so far are:
[name_f]Winnie[/name_f] ([name_m]Don[/name_m]'t care for it)
NeeNee (Yeah right, that’s what my friends 4 year old calls me because he can’t pronounce my name, lol)
[name_u]Wynn[/name_u] (I think this one is kinda pretty, but it’s a stretch to link it to [name_u]Whitney[/name_u])
If anyone here has any suggestions, I’d appreciate it so much!
That’s tough… The only nicknames I thought of were [name_u]Whit[/name_u] and [name_f]Winnie[/name_f]. Maybe Nee (not NeeNee, just Nee lol)? I know someone named this (not born in an English speaking country). It’s similar enough to [name_u]Leigh[/name_u] that no one blinks.
For the record, I think [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] totally works and it’s a beautiful and gentle name.
Maybe a similar sounding name will do?
[name_f]Britney[/name_f] (tbh, this gives me popular cheerleader vibes too, but maybe you have a different association)
[name_u]Courtney[/name_u] (I feel like this works on almost everyone!)
[name_u]Quinn[/name_u]
[name_f]Wendy[/name_f]
[name_f]Gwen[/name_f] (this is nice and soft sounding)
[name_f]Gwendolyn[/name_f]
[name_u]Winter[/name_u]
[name_f]Willa[/name_f] (I think this would work well)
[name_f]Willow[/name_f]
There are also many variations of/similar sound names to [name_f]Marie[/name_f] that you might like. Some that I think fit your personality: [name_f]Maris[/name_f], [name_u]Marian[/name_u], [name_f]Rosemary[/name_f].
Or maybe something related to a childhood nickname or another name your parents considered but didn’t end up calling you?
I don’t think [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] (or [name_u]Win[/name_u]/[name_u]Winn[/name_u]) is a stretch at all! [name_m]Tenny[/name_m]/[name_m]Tennie[/name_m] is the only other thing I can think of…
Thank you very much, and thank you to everyone who has answered so far. I don’t think I’d have a problem with the name on other people, but I’ve never really felt suited to it. Also, I get A LOT of [name_u]Whitney[/name_u] [name_m]Houston[/name_m] comments, which gets old. It doesn’t help that my last name starts with an H, so my work name tag says “[name_u]Whitney[/name_u] H”. People say, “what’s the H stand for? [name_m]Houston[/name_m]?” Or they ask me to sing something for them. It might not seem like much to most people, but it just adds to my social anxiety.
Out of the names that have been talked about so far I’m leaning towards [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] or [name_f]Wendy[/name_f]. I feel like I would have a hard time adjusting to a name that strayed too far in sound and those feel close enough. What do you guys think between those two?
I adore [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] in theory and I think it looks brilliant, but I would be concerned about it sounding like the name is [name_u]Win[/name_u], you know? I’m not generally a fan of [name_f]Wendy[/name_f], but once I picture the [name_m]Peter[/name_m] [name_m]Pan[/name_m] imagery they provided for the name, I like it a lot more. They both have their pros and cons, so I would just weigh those out for what’s more important to you and which you would feel for comfortable with. I can see either one fitting you!
Of those two, I prefer [name_u]Wynn[/name_u]. [name_m]Even[/name_m] though it can be a name in its own right, it sounds more like a nickname for [name_u]Whitney[/name_u], whereas [name_f]Wendy[/name_f] sounds like a different name entirely, if that makes sense. [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] is also a little “quieter”—light and sweet.
I think [name_f]Wendy[/name_f] is a little more understated compared to [name_u]Wynn[/name_u]. I feel like [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] is soft and gentle but still a bit attention grabbing, while a [name_f]Wendy[/name_f] can slide under the radar a little more.
So, I’ve still been thinking about this a lot and playing with some of the names you suggested. At first I was leaning towards [name_u]Wynn[/name_u] because I love the way it looks written. But I can’t really get over how it makes me think “win” as others have pointed out.
I’ve been considering [name_f]Willa[/name_f], and [name_f]Willow[/name_f] too, although might Willow be too “out there.”
My dad’s name was [name_m]William[/name_m] and he passed away when I was 11, so it could make sense to use one of those to honor his memory.
Edit:
I have also just discovered and am kind of liking Wylie, which says it’s a “Scottish, diminutive of William”
It sounds like [name_f]Willow[/name_f] (and maybe [name_u]Wylie[/name_u]?) feel more natural and special to you than the previous names you were considering, and that’s most important! I love the idea of honoring your dad with your new nickname. Seems like it would be easier to “step into” a name that you feel a connection to.
FWIW, [name_f]Willow[/name_f] is one of my favorite names…I find the sound to be very appealing (soft but not insubstantial) & the visual imagery of a willow tree swaying in the wind is lovely.
I really want to take the time to express my gratitude towards everyone who has been helping me with this. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a long time, and it has been so helpful to have people to bounce ideas around with. I’m someone who needs to go through many ideas before I can make a decision.
I ran [name_f]Willow[/name_f] past my fiance and he just can’t seem to see himself getting used to it. All it makes him think about is the movie [name_f]Willow[/name_f] and to him it sounds like a boys nickname name, like [name_m]Will[/name_m]-o, [name_m]Dan[/name_m]-o, etc.
So I went back to the drawing board today and started playing around with [name_f]Marie[/name_f] again. I already give my name as [name_f]Marie[/name_f] when ordering takeout, because if I say [name_u]Whitney[/name_u], my order almost always comes up “[name_f]Brittany[/name_f]”.
When I first met my fiance he was in love with my middle name. He’s Italian, so it reminded him of [name_f]Maria[/name_f]. I still wasn’t sold on being called [name_f]Marie[/name_f] full time, but I think I’d like it better than [name_u]Whitney[/name_u]. But then I started playing with [name_f]Marie[/name_f] nicknames and came across [name_f]Mia[/name_f], which I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u], but had never thought of it as a nn for [name_f]Marie[/name_f]. The more I’m thinking about it the more I love it and think I can make it work.
Also, since he’s Italian my fiance and his whole family call me bella, because it means beautiful. They use it the same way we would use sweetie. But he has often called me “bella mia” which basically means "my beautiful girl"So there’s definitely already a little familiarity with the name.
It also will go so much better than [name_u]Whitney[/name_u] with his last name. In the future I may even consider legally changing my name to [name_f]Marie[/name_f] (or even Marina?) and just telling people I go by [name_f]Mia[/name_f].
I know a woman, [name_f]Wendy[/name_f], and a little girl, [name_u]Wynne[/name_u]. [name_u]Wylie[/name_u] is new to me as a given name, but I know it as a surname.
Are you going to change your name on the marriage certificate or will this be strictly a nn?
Is your current last name suitable for a future son?
Many women drop their MN and use their maiden name as middle after marriage.
When I read your question, the nickname [name_f]Nia[/name_f] (rhyming with [name_f]Mia[/name_f]) immediately came to mind. I think it’s a natural nickname for [name_u]Whitney[/name_u] and it seems sweet and gentle. Then as I read on I saw that you were thinking about [name_f]Mia[/name_f], which is also great! I love how it already seems familiar to you due to its similarity to [name_f]Marie[/name_f] and “bella mia”.
[name_f]Nia[/name_f] could be a good middle ground, since it is very similar to [name_f]Mia[/name_f] (so already sounds somewhat familiar), but is also basically the last syllable of your given name
But whatever you choose, the most important thing is that YOU feel comfortable using it!
Omg, you are amazing! You actually found a cute nickname hiding in [name_u]Whitney[/name_u]! Someone suggested Nee, but it sounded too much like “knee” to me, not to mention my current last name is “----ney” with the same nee sound. I really like [name_f]Nia[/name_f]! It has that soft, sweet sound to it that I’m looking for. I really dislike the harsh ‘t’ in [name_u]Whitney[/name_u], and [name_u]Whit[/name_u] rhymes with several unpleasant things.
I can’t believe I went from having no names I liked, to now having several to choose from. Now the hard part will be narrowing it down.
I think I’m going to talk to my mom and see how she feels about the whole situation. I don’t want to hurt her feelings, since she obviously chose my original name. I’ll put some feelers out and see how she would feel about me going by my middle name [name_f]Marie[/name_f], if that doesn’t seem to bother her too much, I’m going to tell her that actually [name_f]Marie[/name_f] is a little too common for me, so I was thinking about slightly altering it to [name_f]Marina[/name_f]. I just want to “make it my own”.
I want to minimize confusion, so IF my family can get behind calling me [name_f]Marina[/name_f], I might go with that. If they don’t like [name_f]Marina[/name_f], but are ok with [name_f]Marie[/name_f], I can still change it to [name_f]Marina[/name_f], with [name_f]Marie[/name_f] being a nn that just family calls me. This would probably be a first choice situation, since I’d prefer to just not even see “[name_u]Whitney[/name_u]” anymore. This also seems to be the route that offers the most nn possibilities.
If they just absolutely cannot imagine calling me [name_f]Marina[/name_f]/[name_f]Marie[/name_f] and insist on using [name_u]Whitney[/name_u]/[name_u]Whit[/name_u]…well I won’t fight them on it. In that case I don’t think family will use [name_f]Nia[/name_f], but I will just deal with them using my full name. I can just tell new people, “[name_m]Hi[/name_m], I’m [name_u]Whitney[/name_u], but I go by [name_f]Nia[/name_f]”
[name_f]Marina[/name_f] is a beautiful name, & if you’d like a nickname you could use [name_f]Mia[/name_f], [name_f]Ria[/name_f], [name_f]Nia[/name_f], [name_f]Mari[/name_f], [name_f]Rina[/name_f]… If your family think [name_f]Marina[/name_f] is too far from [name_f]Marie[/name_f] to be okay, perhaps you could point out the connection between [name_f]Marina[/name_f]'s meaning of “of the sea” & the Virgin [name_f]Mary[/name_f]'s name of [name_f]Stella[/name_f] [name_f]Maris[/name_f], “star of the sea.” (If you really like the ocean that could help sway your family too.)
I was curious about the name [name_f]Nia[/name_f] & did some research…it appears to be used by several different cultures/languages. In [name_m]Wales[/name_m] it’s used as a variant of the Irish [name_f]Niamh[/name_f], who in mythology was the daughter of the sea (that connection again!) god. [name_f]Niamh[/name_f] means “bright.” In Swahili it means “purpose” & based on the variant of [name_f]Nyah[/name_f], I’m guessing that it’s pronounced NI-ah there rather than NEE-ah.
