I find
Barbara quite charming - not even in a retro way, just in general. The nicknames, unfortunately, are the drawbacks for me:
1.
Barbie sounds quite childish to my ears, even without the doll association.
2.
Barb is probably the most intuitive, but even then reminiscent of barbed wire.
3.
Babs doesn't sound like a person's name at all.
4.
Babe is a term of endearment between couples.
5.
Bobbi sounds like a little boy's name in one breath, and socks in the next.
6.
Babette... actually is pretty cool, but outside of Francophone culture would be perceived as trying way too hard.
7.
Basia (BAH-shah) is one I've heard among Polish people before, and it's kind of cute (if a little reminiscent of bashing people in the head).
The Croatian nickname
Bara is the only one that I'd feel comfortable with, honestly; so if I were to use
Barbara, I'd try to push this nickname early on.
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Please rate my personal name lists:
www.behindthename.com/pnl/69381www.behindthename.com/pnl/69381/117507www.behindthename.com/pnl/69381/109399www.behindthename.com/pnl/69381/132018This message was edited 12/29/2022, 9:04 PM