Names by Nickname

Ossie is best-known as the name of actor Ossie Davis, whose full name did not start with Os: It was Raiford. But Ossie makes a cute contemporary short form for any name beginning with Os.

Otto is cool again. Long a quintessential Old Man Name, Otto has been promoted to trending darling of adventurous baby namers.

Wheezy short form of lovely name, featured in the movie "Steel Magnolias." Go for Lou or Lulu instead.

Animal names are booming, but this is one that's never been used — although Boaz, which means "ox" in Hebrew, is starting to see more use. With its connotations of strength, teamwork and perseverance, and cool X sound, well, why not? It would work especially well for a child born in the Chinese Year of the Ox (February 2021-January 2022). If you need a longer version an obvious option is Oxford, but there's also Oxley, Oxton, or a slightly different sound like Oakley or Oswald.

Calm, straightforward, patrician sounding: Pace is one new-style name that's well-grounded.

Because it's a generic (and often derogatory) term for an Irishman, Paddy fell out of use as a diminutive or given name, though actress Mare Winningham used it not long ago.

A moderately common surname in two of the world's most populous countries. Helen Pai is one of the main writer of the TV series Gilmore Girls.

Parry is quite common in Wales, often as a surname, but would inevitably be misunderstood as Perry or even Harry.

Sweet and soft alternative to Sasha.

Replaced Patsy as the midcentury's popular, peppy babysitter.

Pearl, like Ruby, has begun to be polished up for a new generation of fashionable children after a century of jewelry box storage. The birthstone for the month of June, Pearl could also make a fresher middle name alternative to the overused Rose. Cool couple Maya Rudolph and Paul Thomas Anderson named their daughter Pearl Minnie, followed by Jack Osbourne, and several celebs have put it in the middle spot, as in Busy Philipps's Cricket Pearl, Jake Owen's Olive Pearl and Caleb Followill's Dixie Pearl .

Peg is a nostalgic turn-of-the-last-century nickname, sociable but slight. Like near-identical twin Peggy, Peg is in mothballs.

For such a short, simple name, Pela has many possible derivations and meanings. It's most commonly cited as a short form of Penelope, but can also be a nickname for Pelagia, a name related to the sea.