This would be by the person’s own volition, not giving a baby a stretchy nickname.
Especially if the full name in question already has a singular intuitive nickname which literally everyone with that name chooses. The (hypothetical-ish) person in question is not allowed to change their name.
E.g. [name_f]Madelyn[/name_f] going by [name_f]Mae[/name_f] instead of [name_f]Maddie[/name_f]
E.g. [name_f]Gwendolyn[/name_f] going by [name_f]Grace[/name_f] instead of [name_f]Gwen[/name_f]
E.g. [name_f]Bethany[/name_f] going by [name_f]Belle[/name_f] instead of [name_f]Beth[/name_f]
E.g. [name_f]Jennifer[/name_f] going by [name_f]Jill[/name_f] instead of [name_f]Jen[/name_f]
Would it be too strange? [name_m]Or[/name_m] could the person get away with it? Please note the full name has zero other intuitive nicknames. [name_m]Just[/name_m] one they really don’t like.
Since it is your own name, I think you can go by whatever you want! That said, I don’t think this is that different than going by a new name entirely (i.e. [name_f]Brittany[/name_f] going by [name_f]Jane[/name_f] instead). People won’t see any connection between them. One time I told a classmate that my family calls me [name_f]May[/name_f] as a nickname, and she said “oh, is that your middle name?” It wasn’t intuitive enough for her to see it as a shortening of [name_f]Megan[/name_f], so she assumed it was a completely separate name.
I think Mae works for Madelyn, cause all the letters are there. The rest are harder to imagine though. Besides Gwen, I could see Winnie, Wendy or Dolly for Gwendolyn. Less intuitive, but still far less of a stretch than Grace.
Strange, maybe a bit. If possible, I’d try to pick something closer (with all or most of the letters, similar sound, or get creative with the middle name, e.g, I once read about Ivy whose first and middle initials are IV. I think if Bethany has an L middle then Belle might be more understandable), or with strong connections of some sort.
You can pick something different if that’s what you really like, but of course, you’d probably need to explain more.
I don’t think it’s intuitive but also not strange! Nicknames can come from anyplace—even a person’s own preference.
I might wonder what the reasoning/story was but wouldn’t be in shock if someone introduced themselves as [name_f]Evie[/name_f] and I found out later their name was [name_f]Emily[/name_f]. If someone told me, “Hi I’m [name_f]Emily[/name_f] but you can just call me [name_f]Evie[/name_f] instead,” I’d be more confused. Nickname-first introduction seems most natural anyway, if the nickname is what the person wanted to go by.
[name_f]Emily[/name_f] nickname [name_f]Evie[/name_f] actually seems quite cool
I’ve also got a slightly more closely related nickname idea where it shares the first letter and one prominent sound (but is not the typical nickname for the first name). Let’s say [name_f]Jennifer[/name_f] nn [name_f]Joni[/name_f]. Would this be better?
Good to know.
I’m also considering a more closely related nickname which shares the same starting letter plus a prominent sound (but is not the intuitive nickname for the name). Would that work better?
Since it’s the person’s own name, I think it’s totally fine - their decision, their choice to introduce themselves and go by whatever they want.
Some of your examples are less stretchy than others - like [name_f]Madelyn[/name_f] ‘Mae’ and [name_f]Bethany[/name_f] ‘Belle’ feel easier to connect whereas [name_f]Gwendolyn[/name_f] ‘Grace’ feels more random?
Still, I think someone could do it (and if it helps, but Mum does sometimes call me by another G name that isn’t associated with my name in any other way)
To me, that’s more intuitive, yes! I think you might get a question about it every now and then, but I don’t think it’s impossible or so odd that you shouldn’t do it. Actually, it doesn’t seem odd at all. Choose what feels right!
I don’t think it would be too bad unless the names were completely unrelated ex. [name_f]Annabelle[/name_f] nn [name_f]Arwen[/name_f], but [name_f]Madelyn[/name_f] nn [name_f]Mae[/name_f] or [name_f]Bethany[/name_f] nn [name_f]Belle[/name_f] would be ok, you would just have to explain a lot.
I actually prefer stretchy nicknames. [name_f]Bethany[/name_f] nn [name_f]Belle[/name_f] is adorable!! my favorite one has to be [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] nn [name_f]Beanie[/name_f]
I know someone in a similar situation - I have a brother who is called exclusively by a short form of his middle name to avoid the intuitive nickname for his first name. He gets away with this by completely not using that first name, ever. He introduces himself to new people as the nickname, and it is never questioned. Only the family knows his legal first name (and even then, we don’t use it).
So the answer is, the hypothetical person can be called whatever she wants if she introduces herself solely as her preferred name and never uses the legal name. But it might be a bit more difficult to change the name with people she already knows, especially if the reason the person cannot change her name is because certain people in her life refuse to support it and will not call her by anything but the name given at birth.
