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Help[Facts] Re: Nanou & Nanouk, two French feminine names.
in reply to a message by Lucille
Nanou is a French nickname of Anne. Nanouk could be a variant, via Anouk. (Here you have a post about Anouk as possible nickname of Anne: http://www.behindthename.com/bb/arcview.php?id=2877162&board=gen)
Old French nicknames with -ou/-oun/-on are not odd (Michou, Fanchou...), even for feminine names, just as in other Romance languages like Catalan and Occitan. Sometimes, the nicknames with -ou are unisex (Michou is generally Michel, but it was used in '40s and '50s for Michèle/Michelle, as you can check at Donner, ou le journal d'Anne-Marie by Michel Quoist, if I don't remember wrongly).
Manou is not a blend of Manon (originally a nickname of Marianne but later used as nickname of Marie and lately as independent name) with Milou (which is a nickname of Émile), but a nickname of Emmanuelle. Since Manon is being used as independent name, Manou is a non unusual nickname of it.
Manouk (or Manoug) is a masculine Armenian name, meaning "child".
About Milou, as I said, it is strictly a nickname of Émile (and Émilie). Hergé used the name for Tintin's dog and since his girlfriend was named Marie-Louise (nicknamed Malou), some fans have deducted that it was a variation in honour of her; in fact, Hergé was born May 22th, saint Miloud's day, then Milou was a selfhomage using a well known nickname/name.
It is very possible that some Marie-Louise are using Milou as nickname instead of Malou (the straigt nickname), but that is not the origin of Milou and not the main use.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
Old French nicknames with -ou/-oun/-on are not odd (Michou, Fanchou...), even for feminine names, just as in other Romance languages like Catalan and Occitan. Sometimes, the nicknames with -ou are unisex (Michou is generally Michel, but it was used in '40s and '50s for Michèle/Michelle, as you can check at Donner, ou le journal d'Anne-Marie by Michel Quoist, if I don't remember wrongly).
Manou is not a blend of Manon (originally a nickname of Marianne but later used as nickname of Marie and lately as independent name) with Milou (which is a nickname of Émile), but a nickname of Emmanuelle. Since Manon is being used as independent name, Manou is a non unusual nickname of it.
Manouk (or Manoug) is a masculine Armenian name, meaning "child".
About Milou, as I said, it is strictly a nickname of Émile (and Émilie). Hergé used the name for Tintin's dog and since his girlfriend was named Marie-Louise (nicknamed Malou), some fans have deducted that it was a variation in honour of her; in fact, Hergé was born May 22th, saint Miloud's day, then Milou was a selfhomage using a well known nickname/name.
It is very possible that some Marie-Louise are using Milou as nickname instead of Malou (the straigt nickname), but that is not the origin of Milou and not the main use.
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
This message was edited 8/19/2007, 11:55 PM
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