[name_m]How[/name_m] do you berries feel about nicknames that have spellings that do not correspond with the full name (ex. [name_u]Wren[/name_u] for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] or [name_u]Finn[/name_u] for [name_m]Phineas[/name_m])
Is it okay for nicknames to be spelt differently?
Does it make it harder for the child with the name?
Should you just change the spelling of the full name?
I think it is perfectly fine to have nickname spellings that do not correspond with the full name. I love [name_m]Phineas[/name_m] nn [name_u]Finn[/name_u], but would not want it spelled [name_m]Fineas[/name_m] or Phinn. A lot of times children end up with nicknames that have absolutely nothing to do with their given name at all, so I don’t think it is a problem.
I think it’s fine. At least, I hope it’s fine. We hope to have a little [name_f]Elena[/name_f], but I hate the look of [name_f]Lena[/name_f] because it would make me want to say a long E (like [name_f]Lena[/name_f] Horn) instead of a long A, which is how we say [name_f]Elena[/name_f]…
It depends for me… [name_m]Phineas[/name_m]/[name_u]Finn[/name_u] seems fine but [name_u]Wren[/name_u] for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] looks strange to me. But that’s just me, I wouldn’t roll my eyes at it if I came across it. It’s not unheard of traditionally, after all lots of Christophers nicknamed [name_u]Kit[/name_u] use the regular Ch spelling in their full name.
I think it’s fine. [name_u]Wren[/name_u] for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] is a liiiittle bit of a stretch, but not enough that it actually bothers me.
Is it okay for nicknames to be spelt differently?: Turning [name_f]Catherine[/name_f] into [name_f]Katie[/name_f]? Sure no problem. Turning [name_m]Phineas[/name_m] into [name_u]Finn[/name_u]? Sure, no problem. In both circumstances you’re subbing letters that make the same noise in the alphabet to achieve the most phonetic spelling.
Adding a ‘w’ onto [name_u]Ren[/name_u] when it doesn’t appear in the name (think [name_f]Florence[/name_f], [name_f]Lauren[/name_f], [name_f]Karen[/name_f] etc)? No. It’s absolutely pointless. The letter is completely silent and serves no purpose than the parents vanity for a nature name. The way I look at it is; if you wouldn’t do:
[name_f]Natalie[/name_f] = Gnat (which follows exactly the same principle) then don’t do [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] = [name_u]Wren[/name_u].
If you like [name_u]Wren[/name_u] as a name, great, use it! But don’t shoe-horn it into somewhere it doesn’t belong. It drives me absolutely batty!
Does it make it harder for the child with the name?: I think a silent letter would be extremely annoying, yes. People automatically write my name as [name_u]Ren[/name_u].
Should you just change the spelling of the full name?: Noooo. Most definitely not.
I think it’s fine. [name_u]Finn[/name_u] as a nickname for [name_m]Phineas[/name_m] makes complete sense, and [name_u]Wren[/name_u] freshens up a name like [name_f]Lauren[/name_f]. I think it’s better to spell the names right than mess around with them.
For the most part I agree with renrose. Substituting letters to create a more phonetic spelling is absolutely fine, but adding letters seems unnecessary.
However, I think it also depends on how often you use the nickname. If you only intend to use ‘[name_u]Wren[/name_u]’ informally with close family and friends and ‘[name_f]Lauren[/name_f]’ on all official documents, at school, in the workplace etc then I don’t see a problem with it at all.
Here is my problem:
I looove [name_u]Wren[/name_u], but with my other favorites, it doesn’t look like a name because they are so long. [name_f]My[/name_f] grandfathers name was [name_m]Larry[/name_m], and I want to honor him in some way, hence, [name_f]Lauren[/name_f]. [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] is longer and goes with my favorites. I would call her [name_u]Wren[/name_u], and the only reason I would use the silent W is because I like the way [name_u]Wren[/name_u] looks better than [name_u]Ren[/name_u].
Ok… Hmm. Then perhaps use the significantly less popular [name_m]Lawren[/name_m] spelling? It’s a legit spelling and gives you ‘[name_u]Wren[/name_u]’ quite neatly.
[name_u]Lawrence[/name_u] - [name_m]Lawren[/name_m]
[name_u]Laurence[/name_u] - [name_f]Lauren[/name_f]
I personally love the idea of [name_u]Wren[/name_u]/[name_f]Lauren[/name_f]! [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] is such a popular, well-known name that having the nickname of [name_u]Wren[/name_u] adds a cool element to it!
If you’re not completely convinced of the idea, you could use [name_u]Wren[/name_u] as a first name seeing as you love it so much, and then find another way to honour your grandfather for the middle name. For example, [name_f]Larrissa[/name_f] is pretty, and you could even spell it [name_f]Larryssa[/name_f]. Or [name_f]Clarissa[/name_f]/[name_f]Clarrissa[/name_f]?
I searched ‘lar’ on the Nameberry search engine and it came up with 137 girl’s names that had ‘lar’ in there somewhere - might be a good way to find other names to honour a [name_m]Larry[/name_m]?
But it makes no sense O_o Most of the time you’re saying it out loud anyway. What’s so wrong with [name_u]Ren[/name_u]?
Not every nickname HAS to make sense.
[name_f]Daisy[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Dulcinea[/name_f] - but users on here still loved it.
[name_f]Polly[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Mary[/name_f] - but it’s still used.
[name_f]Poppy[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Penelope[/name_f] - but I see it all the time.
[name_f]Kitty[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Catherine[/name_f] - but it’s still a variant.
[name_f]Posy[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] - but it’s always suggested.
[name_f]Lily[/name_f] doesn’t make sense for [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] (neither does [name_f]Libby[/name_f]) - but it’s still a nickname for it.
[name_f]Lauren[/name_f] nn [name_u]Wren[/name_u] makes more sense than any of those - at least the sounds are there. Not to mention, perhaps they just dislike the [name_u]Ren[/name_u] spelling? Personally, I don’t love it, and I would prefer [name_u]Wren[/name_u]. [name_m]Just[/name_m] because it’s your nickname and it works for you, doesn’t mean it does for everyone.
If the OP wants [name_u]Wren[/name_u] as a nn for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f], is it such a crime? No, not really.
She’s not choosing anything horrendous - like Larynnne or anything like that.
She’s not trying to get entirely unreasonable nicknames, such as [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] nn [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] or something like that.
All she’s done is added 1 letter to the [name_u]Ren[/name_u] nickname. That’s all. It’s seriously not that big of a deal.
Sure, I agree, but Ren is already sitting inside Lauren. It’s there. It’s functional as it is and makes sense already. That was my point and Polly being a nickname for Mary doesn’t disqualify that. Both points are valid.
I didn’t say it had to work for everyone. In my previous question I was just trying to understand what was so disliked about it. If people like the sound perfectly fine, then why does the silent ‘w’ make such a difference to it’s popularity? Personally, I feel that if someone really loves the name Wren then it makes an excellent name on its own without having to be a nickname.
I never called it a crime. I didn’t scream and demand that she didn’t use it. I merely answered the questions she asked - enquiring about our feelings on the subject - and made, what I feel, is a reasonable argument against using the extra letter. In fact, I even made a suggestion that she use the Lawren spelling so she could have the best of both worlds and not be concerned about the spellings not matching.
woah, I think we’re making it a much huger deal than anyone [name_m]IRL[/name_m] would.
I agree that it’s a little silly to add a silent letter to a nickname, though [name_f]Margaret[/name_f] gets [name_f]Margot[/name_f] with a silent T.
I like the idea of [name_m]Lawren[/name_m] actually. It’s not the most obvious spelling but I think it could work, especially to honor a [name_u]Lawrence[/name_u].
In the end, yes, it’s a little silly, but does it really matter all that much? [name_m]Will[/name_m] her life be altered significantly and negatively by a silent letter being added to her nickname? No.
Trying not to make it a big deal, I just wanted to explain myself 
[name_f]Margot[/name_f] is [name_m]French[/name_m], which is why the silent letter is there.
Okay, just to clear some things up:
I already said I dislike the spelling [name_u]Ren[/name_u], and the reason why I wouldn’t use [name_u]Wren[/name_u] by itself.
I don’t really like alternative spellings for girls names, so [name_m]Lawren[/name_m] just isn’t my style.
The way a name looks on paper has just as much influence on me as how it sounds, so the silent W makes all the difference to me.
I agree with Lawsonhaley, not every nickname has to make sense, but in this case [name_u]Wren[/name_u] is a perfectly valid/sensible nickname for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f].
Sure [name_u]Ren[/name_u] is “functional”, but I just like how [name_u]Wren[/name_u] looks better.
This has gotten blown [name_m]WAY[/name_m] out of proportion. If you met a little girl named [name_u]Wren[/name_u] on the street and she said it was a nickname for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f], who cares how you spell it in your head. She may have to correct you once or twice, but I don’t think that is such a big deal. I have to correct people on how to say and spell my last name every day.
Okay, just to clear some things up:
I already said I dislike the spelling [name_u]Ren[/name_u], and the reason why I wouldn’t use [name_u]Wren[/name_u] by itself.
I don’t really like alternative spellings for girls names, so [name_m]Lawren[/name_m] just isn’t my style.
The way a name looks on paper has just as much influence on me as how it sounds, so the silent W makes all the difference to me.
I agree with Lawsonhaley, not every nickname has to make sense, but in this case [name_u]Wren[/name_u] is a perfectly valid/sensible nickname for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f].
Sure [name_u]Ren[/name_u] is “functional”, but I just like how [name_u]Wren[/name_u] looks better.
This has gotten blown [name_m]WAY[/name_m] out of proportion. If you met a little girl named [name_u]Wren[/name_u] on the street and she said it was a nickname for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f], who cares how you spell it in your head. She may have to correct you once or twice, but I don’t think that is such a big deal. I have to correct people on how to say and spell my last name every day.
I’m very confused now… Didn’t you start this thread asking for our feelings and opinions on this subject? I answered you perfectly calmly and wrote about my feelings on the subject. I haven’t once made a big deal out of it. I’ve said twice that I was merely answering your questions - thinking I’d be well placed to help as my name is actually [name_u]Ren[/name_u] - and furthering the discussion by asking another of my own.
Why am I being told - by more than one person now - that I’m ‘blowing it way out of proportion’? I haven’t once been argumentative or confrontational. I haven’t attacked anyone or told them they were wrong.
Am I right in thinking that you’re actually not looking for opinions and just want people to tell you that [name_u]Wren[/name_u] is a great nickname for [name_f]Lauren[/name_f]? You seem to have already made your mind up 
I was honestly only trying to help in accordance with what you originally asked.
I think [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] nn [name_u]Wren[/name_u] and [name_m]Phineas[/name_m] nn [name_u]Finn[/name_u] are perfectly fine.
It is just a nickname and logically it makes sense so the spelling doesn’t bother me.