Nickname. I don’t get it. Why not a TOMNAME or a JENNYNAME? Why does Nicholas get all the fame? Who is he, some sort of bigshot?
When you think about it, how could we ever get along without nicknames? Many nicknames are cool like Rob instead of Bob for Robert. Some nicknames are confusing like Pat for Patricia or Patrick. Some nicknames are unfortunate like Dick for Richard.
Then there seems to be a group of snobs, for lack of a better term, who insist that their formal names are used. ” Don’t call me Larry, call me Lawrence.” “Don’t call me Ann, call me Anastasia.” Really? Pardon the hell out of us for just following the normal conventions of familiarity.
Then, there is the group that takes nicknames to an even more extreme. For instance, Jennifer Lopez becomes J-Lo. I find these to be pretty cool and creative. In addition, who wants to always say five syllables when two will do just fine?
Accordingly, there is another group that takes this even further. With me being Tom Daniels, many call me T D, and some even disdain speaking entirely to just raise their arms in greeting signally a football touchdown or TD.
We as humans seem to always be looking for a shortcut and nicknames certainly are, but we have other ways as well. For instance, the contraction. Instead of saying “do not” we say “don’t”- one less syllable. We also use the apostrophe to show possession and to save words. For instance, “Derek’s equipment” instead of saying “the equipment that belongs to Derek.” Would you rather use six words or two words to express the very same thing?
Some athletes have graphic nicknames which reflect their prowess, such as the boxer, Hurricane Carter. Look them up; these can be a lot of fun.
And finally, “Words are like weapons; they wound sometimes.” In her hit song, “If I Could Turn Back Time,” Cher astutely emphasizes the power of name calling. What the speaker may think is funny, assuredly, the receiver of the name calling does not.
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never break me.
This controversial statement used by all of us sometime in our lives and with our children was first used in an African Methodist Church during the Civil War. You can imagine the deep meaning of those words at that time.
Let’s be careful with how we use nicknames. When I was younger, my mom bought me clothing from the “Chubby Department.” That nickname took many years of therapy and medications to overcome. Just kidding but you get my intent.
Oh, getting back to why they are called “NICKNAMES”. In the OLD English, the prefix “eke” meant before or in place of. Over the years, eke evolved into the word nick. Sorry, all you Nicholases out there. You are not as special as you thought!
