Nickname Names

An approachable mini name that could go on the birth certificate, but may work best as a nickname. Full name options include Thaddeus, Theodore, and Thomas, which was the given name of Abe's son Tad Lincoln. Taddy is a rare alternative to Teddy.

In the contemporary US, Minka attracted notice via actress Minka Kelly, who played the gorgeous Lyla on Friday Night Lights.

A kind of old-fashioned nickname name that's enjoying some fresh life thanks to trendy brother Lane. Lainie is a more old-school spelling.

Nickname name Jase joined twin brother Jace in the Top 100 in 2013, after first entering the list in 2002 -- but has since dropped in the charts. Inspiration may be Jase (born Jason) Robinson of the reality show Duck Dynasty.

A cute nickname, but June is a much better bet for the birth certificate.

Like Lottie, Letty is a nickname name not heard in over a century, giving it the patina of a treasured antique.

Liza's heyday was the mid-1970s, following on the heels of super-popular sister Lisa. But thanks to the fact that it never became superpopular, Liza remains a name not especially tied to one generation or style.

Sixties-style nickname which is also the name of a small biting insect, particularly prevalent in Scotland.

The classic strong-yet-friendly nickname name, much used for charming movie characters.

Meg, perennially one of the Little Women, is a Margaret short form that manages to be neither quite in nor quite out of style. Meg is sleeker and more sophisticated than Maggie, more contemporary than Peg, more stylish than Megan, and still one of the best diminutives of Margaret.

Meg Ryan was born Margaret Mary Emily Anne.

Minimalist nickname via XXX star Diesel (born Mark Vincent).

Designer (as in Marc Jacobs) form of Mark. An international classic, but long falling in popularity as a boys' name.

A variation of mega popular name Emma and all of her cousins, Emmie came back to the US Top 1000 for the first time in 80 years in 2016. It's phonetically the same as more popular Emmy, but this option may avoid the award show connection. We could see it rising in future years.

As the common short form of Zachary or, more unusually, Zachariah, Zack is less intuitive than Zach or Zac in terms of spelling but clearer in terms of pronunciations. Maybe because it rhymes with Jack and Mack, it also feels more complete as a name. Some people also use Zack and brothers as a short form of Isaac.

Swap two letters of Birdie and you get Bridie, a traditional diminutive of Bridget. Bridie fits perfectly with the trend for standalone vintage nicknames like Betty and Sadie, but is surprisingly rare.

The modern name Till is in the German Top 100. Used in contemporary terms on its own, it's traditionally a short form of names beginning with Diet such as Deitrich, which is itself a form of Theodoric. Because of its English word equivalent, it's a bit slight to ever make it as a standalone name in the English-speaking world.

In the 1940s, Toni began to surpass its progenitor, Antonia, but it peaked in 1960 and has since dropped back below the US Top 1000.

Every other little kid's name in 1957 but few Jameses are called Jimmy today; they're more often James or Jamie.

Jackie Kennedy gave this name a lot of style, but it doesn't seem destined for a comeback the way brother name Jack has. Jackie and Jacqueline both peaked in 1961.