# Why shorten it?? I don't get it.



## memewest

Why do people pick out gorgeous names for their children, and then go and shorten them??

If your not going to call your child by the name you've given them, then why give them that name in the first place?? :dohh:

And if you prefer the shortened version, why not just name them that?? :shrug:

I have Elizabeth and James, and they are called Elizabeth and James, not Libby or Jamie, or any of the other versions of their names.


Does anyone else think along the same lines as me?? or am i alone here?


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## x-Rainbow-x

I have Alexander and i call him Alex most the time, this is my personal preference.

we chose to name him Alexander because we wanted HIM to have the choice when he was older to shorten it if he wished or not.


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## Serene123

I get REALLY annoyed when people call Caitlyn, Kate or Katie!


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## x_Rainbow_x

lol sorry im the oppersite of the fence.. OH wants to call our son Daniel but he will grow up being Danny, My OH's name is shortened, i only use the full name when im telling him off..


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## Ema

I HATE it when people call jacob- jake or jakey! I called him jacob for a reason :) xXx


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## Amygdala

I'm all *for *shortening names. :D I'd like my children to have beautiful, classy grown-up names (and I think Elisabeth and James fit does criteria perfectly by the way:thumbup:) that they can feel comfortable with in any situation (meeting new people in the pub, interviewing for a job, receiving the Nobel prize:haha:). But I'm also a fan of pet names for people you are close to. So I'd still shorten my kids names (when I talk to them), I think it's cute and just another little way of showing affection. Having said that, I wouldn't introduce my kids with their pet names but I guess other people will always shorten things anyway..:shrug:


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## Tilly

I love the name Bethanie, but I always call her by her full name. Certain people insist on calling her Beth, which im not too keen on because I feel shes too young for that name at the mo. Saying that though, I call her fen most of the time - and have a few other annoying nicknames.


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## MiissMuffet

LOL nicknames are fine!! I don't see anything wrong with them at all!!!


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## Bekkiboo

Yep I'm guilty on this one! 

I call Jordon Jordy or Jord and Devon gets called Devy or Dev, only by his close family though, even his friends at school call them Jordon and Devon and not forgetting teachers of course.

Most kids will end up growing up and wanting to use a shortened version of their name anyway.

My name is Rebecca but I hate being called that, everyone only knows me as Bekki and I cringe when someone uses my full name!

So my conclusion is, aslong as the children are aware of their proper name, I don't have a problem with using a shortened version. :thumbup:


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## letia659

I have a Jacob and LO in the belly is Lucas and we call Jacob Jake sometimes but to most everyone he is Jacob and Lucas will inevitably be called Luke by us some of the time but I stick with the full name most of the time but do not see any reason not to shorten it some of the time but I definatly wouldnt all the time. but my mom is with you on this she hates it when we call Jacob Jake in front of her...

I do have a friend that has a lil girl named Albrey and she only goes by Sissy and that annoys me because it isnt even a shortened version of her name and I wonder why parents do this to their child and its not just her mom or dad that call her this its everybody I wonder if she even knows her real name :shrug:


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## whiby

I'm kind of neutral on the issue - I do like the fact that Ethan's name can't really be shortened, but having said that if he was a girl he would have been Charlotte, and it's more than likely that would have been shortened to Charlie :)


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## MUMOF5

I think it really is an individual thing and personal preference, the only ones of ours who's name we shorten is Frankie, his 'proper' name is Franklin. If I get my way this baby will be named Madeleine, but we will call her Maddie. I think it also depends on the name.....


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## smartie

I'm kinda on the fence with this one. I wouldnt shorten our own childrens names (not that Hannah is one that can really be shortened anyway and neither can the names we've chosen for this baby) but I do call others (adults mostly) by a shortened version of their name.


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## TattiesMum

I think names kind of evolve...

My eldest is Charlotte and she is ALWAYS called that - it's never shortened and she wouldn't answer if anyone dared lol.

My middle one is Harriet, but that is almost always shortened to Hattie or Tattie, and has been since she was a toddler - it just suits her personality more :shrug:

My youngest is Jacob but he is always called Jake - I always intended to call him Jake, but my ex registered it as Jacob anyway :cry:


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## Tasha

I tried to choose names that would not be shortened (although Kaysie will probably get shortened to Kay, which I dont like (no offence)), but people still call Morgan; Morgie. 

My mum and dad named my sister Vikki as they liked the name Vikki but did not want to name her Victoria if they would only call her Vikki.


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## XxXBubsXxX

I named my daughter a short name - Freya so no one would shorten it, Low and behold i find myself calling her Fray-Fray as a nickname which is even longer! I give up... i must be insane!


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## ChloesMummy

Im not into shortening names at all. I love Charlottes name but unfortunately I get people all the time calling her Lottie or Charlie it does my head in!


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## Faerie

Guess it's personal preference. 

My sisters and I were all given long names, which we (or my parents for 2 of us) all shortened. As an adult I like having the choice, and use both names in different situations, a bit like have two personalities ;)

I love the name Sofia... but she does get called 'Fia, because my 2 year old niece calls her that and it's sweet. 

My husband's family insist on shortening it to Sofi, which I hate, not because I don't like the name but to me Sophie is a completely different name and that's not what I called her.


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## DizzyMoo

My son's 1st name is Joshua-Lee, but he gets josh, joshy & joshua. I personally like them all which is why i chose it.


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## anothersquish

I shorten my own name and noone dares call me by my full name if they know me.....
I have given my children names that cant be shortened but my son still has a nickname completely unrelated to his actual name. 

I think its rude to assume a shortening of someone elses name, such as when people call my sisters 9yr old "Beth" instead of "Bethany" even though they dont know her and she is ALWAYS called "Bethany" in full at all times. However if thats what the parent/child uses regularly I dont see a problem, such as a friend who has always been known as pip or pippa though her name is Phillipa, noone in her family remembers her ever being called Phillipa in their home...she is only known as Phillipa at work. 

Quite often its a sign of affection for a person, plus once they grow up you cant stop them from shortening their own names if they like....unless you give them a name that cant be shortened!!


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## ~KACI~

Not fussed TBH but it desn't relly effect me as both my children have names that can't be shortened:)


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## Fliss_floss

I doesnt really bother me tbh.

If for example i named my daughter Charlotte i would probably call her Lottie or Charlie. I think that's fine bacause she's my daughter and if i want to shorted her name then i will. 

I think i would get annoyed tho if other ppl took it upon themselves to shorten her name.

My name is Felicity and 90% of the people i know don't call me this lol i get Flick, Fee, Fliss. 
Depending on who i'm speaking to i usually introduce myself as Flick and keep Felicity for work and doctors appts lol
x


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## sophie c

i often call alys aly. her full name is alys mae hughes and i call her alys mae sometimes or aly mae, also maisy moo! lol

she wont know her name i swear! hhaha

xx


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## kate.m.

Both me and my husband have names that cant be shortened, and we have both said that we feel like we missed out because of this! We just have 1 name for all situations, whereas i would have quite liked to have a name that only my good friends called me, and DH feels the same way about his (Kate & Neil incase ur wondering! lol!)

So we want to give future children names that can be shortened if they choose to be!


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## kate.m.

Both me and my husband have names that cant be shortened, and we have both said that we feel like we missed out because of this! We just have 1 name for all situations, whereas i would have quite liked to have a name that only my good friends called me, and DH feels the same way about his (Kate & Neil incase ur wondering! lol!)

So we want to give future children names that can be shortened if they choose to be!


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## Snowball

See I kind of think this way. Our little boy Eddie's full name is Eddie. My mum desperately wanted me to call him Edward but I thought, what's the point when we actually really like the name Eddie and are going to call him that anyway?

It's the same with this one. He's going to be called Ozzie. My mum wanted to us to call him Osmond but that's not we're planning on calling him that full time so he's going to be an Ozzie :D


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## ThatGirl

i agree.... oh and a dont like sorten virsion thomas wont become a tom... nor will future kids have shorten virsions


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## emerald78

I think the same however, I am cautious of names being shortened anyway. People here automatically shorten names straight away even when you have introduced yourself with your full name it drives me mad. 

I will not choose a name that can be shortened especially to something that I don't like. It makes the whole situation of choosing a name very frustrating.


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## Nic1107

lol In my extended family, if we hear our full name we know we're about to get yelled at. If we get the middle name too... watch out! I'm actually kind of disappointed that our son will have a one-syllable name; I can't yell at him properly without more syllables! :rofl:

Now that I think about it, none of our chosen names can really be shortened... I'm sure we'll end up coming up with nicknames for them anyway. I used to go by my full first name but I got sick of it as I don't feel that "Nicole" suits me at all... but "Nic" suits me just fine! I even asked the pastor at my wedding to refer to me as "Nic" for the ceremony; he gave me a strange look but oh well, that's what I wanted! lol


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## LoraLoo

toriaaaaTRASH said:


> I get REALLY annoyed when people call Caitlyn, Kate or Katie!

This is my pet hate too, I've told her shes called Caitlyn not Kate and to tell her friends that too! xx


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## Blah11

My parents gave me the name Amanda with every intention of calling me Mandy :shrug: No one refers to me as Amanda. NO ONE.
You can't really shorten Amelie to much so I don't have that problem.


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## Mocha

Well there are some names that I love on kids, and some on adults, but never on the other. It's nice to have a longer, more formal name, and be able to shorten it to something more informal and "cuter" when they're younger. Also gives THEM more options.. lots of people hate their name lmao.


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## JennTheMomma

I don't get it either. Our son's name is Hunter, which isn't long, and people call him Hunt. It bothers me.


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## CharlieP

Snowball said:


> See I kind of think this way. Our little boy Eddie's full name is Eddie. My mum desperately wanted me to call him Edward but I thought, what's the point when we actually really like the name Eddie and are going to call him that anyway?
> 
> It's the same with this one. He's going to be called Ozzie. My mum wanted to us to call him Osmond but that's not we're planning on calling him that full time so he's going to be an Ozzie :D

I'm in this camp...our little one is going to be Charlie and people always ask if he is going to be Charles on the birth certificate...definitely not - I think Charlie is cute and Charlies sounds old...

My OH keeps calling him Charles at the moment though - and we have fallen out about it - I've told him if he is going to insist on calling him Charles (ever) then we will have to pick a different name!! That will be difficult though because he's always been Charlie - even before we concieved! (good job we are having a boy!)

Another people say is "if its a girl you can call her Charlie" assuming that because I like it for a boy I'll like it for a girl and I don't (no offence to anyone with Charlie girls out there).

x


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## welsh dragon

Im the same my little girl is called Victoria & i cant stand it being shortened 2 Vicky she woz called Victoria so just use tht lol


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## lisa35

My sons William and i call him Will,Bill (he hates) and William, it depends on how i feel to what i call him. I think it's good good for the child to have a choice to change their name if they wish.


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## mum2morgan

Blah11 said:


> My parents gave me the name Amanda with every intention of calling me Mandy :shrug: No one refers to me as Amanda. NO ONE.
> You can't really shorten Amelie to much so I don't have that problem.

Ams, Ammy, Amsy, Amsylicious, Amsywoo :winkwink:


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## chuck

My first name is Charlotteanne

Far too long! I was always Charlotte until I got to uni where I started being called Charlie, now I'm Charlie to everyone except family and old friends from home!


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## Pink_Witch

my kids are called: Rebekah, Thomas,William,Charlotte,Ethan and Ernie. But day to day they are called becks, tom, wills, floss, eath and ern. they have the choice when they are growing up what they prefer to be called, the eldest always spells her name bex:wacko: lol 

my given name is Nichola and i HATE HATE HATE it with a passion, and it pees me off that even as an adult of 37 my parents still insist on calling me nichola rather than nicki.....yet theyll call my brother chris when his name is christopher!!


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## amazed

I have a keiron,chloe and jamie and they all get shortened lol,usually by me;)


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## wishingonastar

yep isabel is just that isabel!
we figure when she's older she can choose but while we have control thats the name we gave her so thats what people call her...we've had several peeps just assume they can call her izzy and they've been corrected!!! :rofl:


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## wishingonastar

actually here's the flipside to that... my MIL called my OH Mark on birth certificate, yet ALWAYS calls him Markus inconversation :confused:


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## polo_princess

Im not to fussed either way, as long as it was a shortening i used iykwim, not one that other people made up. Brooke cant really be shortened much so i usually just call her B or little B.

My step sister is known as Tia, even though her full name is Victoria, but my step mums name is that too so i can see why they chose that shortnening as she is know as Vicky ... if that makes any sense at all :lol:


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## MrsRoughton

i hate people shortening Holly's name as they call her Hol which sounds Horrid. had to tell few of the girls about it at nursery as it sounds horrible. a few people call her Holly lou which i don't mind. but my oh thinks i being to strict about people using her really name. but it is her name andn if i had wanted to call her Hol thats what hert name would of been!!!!


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## angeljewel

My poor LO gets all sorts! His name is Evan, which you would think couldn't be shortened to much, but here goes:

Evie (my nickname for him)
Evie Bevvie (my mates)
Evs Bevs (as above)
Heaven (My neice and nephew have called him this since birth)
Evs
Evan James (when he is being naughty)
Evie Boops (not sure where this came from)

Poor thing!!!


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## bailey98

We called our first daughter Abbie, did not see the point of calling her Abigail when nobody would call her it!
For the same reason we choose Luke instead of Lucas but i regret that a little bit as i love the name Lucas so much!!!!


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## hayley x

I named my son Alex cause thats what I liked - not Alexander! xxx


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## sweetniss113

My kids Birth given names are family names and are shortened as to avoid confusion when theey are all in the same room the older family gets to use the full name and my kids have the short version


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## BlackBerry25

I don't get why you care what other people do with their kids names?

Anyways, to answer your question, doesn't bother me one bit if people shorten Helena's name. My little sisters call her Layna. I call her H. :shrug:


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## tasha41

I named my daughter Elyse and I call her ... I guess Lees or Leesy lol most of the time. Her name is pretty and I love it but I can't have a nickname or something for my daughter? :shrug:


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## maybebaby3

i guess it is all personal preference. our kids have short names but we still have pet names 4 them. dylan is dd and erin is erinsita but only close family use them, otherwise they are dylan and erin.


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## MrsBandEgglet

My little fella will be called Arthur (after his grandad) and people have either turned their noses up to it or said something like "so you'll be shortening it to Artie then?" Huh? What? No, his name is Arthur and we'll call him that. I personally think it's a gorgeous, strong name and i don't wanna ruin it. I like it just the way it is. xx

https://lbdf.lilypie.com/oxQAp1.png 

~Bump Buddies with Jox~ :flower: ~ Mamas little man due 24/1/10~ :blue:

I'M VIABLE!!!! :yipee::yipee:


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## myasmumma

haha i dont think anyone can shorten mya  thats why i chose it but i dont mind shortening names


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## Halle71

People keep asking me what I'm going to shorten Matilda to and I don't mind shortening her name but I would rather a name just happens rather than me deciding she is going to be Tilly/Tilda/Mattie etc.
Anyway, she's Missy Moo at the moment anyway!!


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## AJpeartree

I dunno, I think it doesn't really matter to me that much. When they get older their friends will have names for them and I won't have a say in the matter. I think nicknames are so cute! can't sweat the small stuff =)


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## fluffpuffin

I'm glad now that I have a name that can be shortened and it winds me up when people call me by my full name, sounds kinda stern and formal. 

Some of our friends had a baby last year and have refused to shorten her name or let others do that, which I think is just a little odd, but I'll follow their wishes anyway. But I'd laugh if in a few years she'll only want to be called by a short form of her name...:haha:

I'd have no problem whatsoever if other people gave my child a nick name, indicates affection :) We're thinking of having Milo (boy) - can't really be shortened, or Gwyneth or Cerys for a girl. If someone called my daughter Gwynnie or Gwen I'd love that.


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## Midnight_Fairy

my son is Matthew and I HATE people calling him Matty or Matt with a passion but I guess now hes at school the inevitable will happen * rolls eyes*:( lol


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## Tara123006

My little girl is 2 and her name is madison. We call her Madison & Maddie. Maddie is very appropriate for her age :) and madison is appropriate for when she is older. My name is just Tara and I ALWAYS wanted to have a shorter version of my name growing up! Idk why ...all my friends did, and I loved it! So, subconsciously that may be why i did it! haha I still love it though!


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## mamalove

All 3 of my children have a 4 letter names which can't be shortened,but they all have long nick names which i just make up as i go lol


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## AWSBabyGifts

i totaly agree with you i called my son lucas and some people still insist on calling him luke and i hate it when they do that i am always correcting people


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## WhisperOfHope

my name is lindsey-anne but always calleds linds
ben is benjamin but called ben or beny

and no kids for us yet but we have names picked out thomas what no dout wil be shortend to tom or tommy and kimberly what you have either kim or kimmy im not fussed about nicknames my friends hates it when you calle her little girl el when her name is elisha


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## staycutee

I don't think ppl intentionally think "I'm going to shorten this person's name" its just mid conversation sometimes its easier to do, not really something ppl plan! lolx


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## jackiea85

I really don't mind it, I know that Joseph will probably end up being called Joe when he is older. No one (apart from my mum) calls me by my full name and I don't think anyone has since primary school! I'm always Jackie, never Jacqueline!


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## pinknpurple

Interesting thread, there are many conflicting opinions and it just goes to show you should never assume to shorten someone/someones childs name lol. I am not fussed on shortening names, though I called my son Charlie as that was the name I chose for him. My nan said you can't give a child a name like Charlie as it isn't a proper name it's a nickname and I had to put Charles on his birth certificate but I just didn't listen to her. My child, my choice and I wanted Charlie not Charles, as someone else has already said. However a lot of the names we are considering for the next one ESPECIALLY our girls name we like a lot of shortened versions but still want to give the full version on the birth certificate lol. I agree with what a lot of other women have said it's nobodies business but the parents really what to call a child and think shortening is only a problem if someone else takes it upon themselves to shorten a name. My name is Hannah and there are a few people who call me Han... I hate it. Yuck. Lol there are only a rare few who can get away with it without being ignored until they call me Hannah lol


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## aliss

We have picked out Alice (girl) or Alexandre (boy). Alexandre is my DH's middle name, but will likely be shortened. In Quebec, most people would pronounce it "alexahnd" anyways but I'll stick with Alex.


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## PregnantKez

I actually have picked a girls name (if we have a girl) *DELIBERATELY *to be shortened.

Because we both liked the name Ellie / Elle but I thought that a lot of little girls are being called this at the moment we chose ELEANOR so we can call her Elle but she will still have a beautiful longer name if she so chooses. The boys name will be Kyle because I like names with 1 syllable.

I have a habit will always shorten names, i.e. my own name Kerry --> Kez


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## Sam9kids

Doesnt bother me! All mine have nicknames!

Joseph- Joe
Bethany- Beth
Lauren- Lol
Rebekah- Bek or Bekka
Rachel- Rach or Rachy roo
Sean- Seany
Ellis- Boo
Lewis- Looby or looby loo!

xx


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## trashit

I agree with some of them but some names sound better shortened, like Archie rather than ArchieBALD lol and Alfie rather than Alfred. Freddie rather than Frederick.... Its just more modern!


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## Emma.Gi

I don't think it matters whether you call your child by their name or a nickname, who's business is it apart from the parents?

My son's called Harrison but he goes by Harry, I gave him the name Harrison so he has plenty of variants to chose from as he grows up, he has different ways to introduce himself given the situation and has the choice to be who he ideally wants to be!


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