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Help[Opinions] Unfortunate Nickname?
Hey, I was wondering if you think BJ is an intuitive nickname for a kid named Robert Jay? He *might* sometimes go by Beau/Bo, does that make a difference? I don’t know if I’m worried about it because I’m a name nerd and am overthinking it or if this is a legitimate enough concern to look at different names/combos?
Also, I realized that my married initials are going to be LMN, which to me looks like Lemon and I found this: “From the Old English Leofman, composed of the elements leof ‘dear’, ‘beloved’ + mann ‘man’, ‘person’. This came to be used as a nickname for a lover or sweetheart” which I think adds to the sweetness of it as a potential nickname.
Cute or contrived?
Also, I realized that my married initials are going to be LMN, which to me looks like Lemon and I found this: “From the Old English Leofman, composed of the elements leof ‘dear’, ‘beloved’ + mann ‘man’, ‘person’. This came to be used as a nickname for a lover or sweetheart” which I think adds to the sweetness of it as a potential nickname.
Cute or contrived?
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Replies
BJ is definitely a possibility. If it worries you, choose a different name. The child in question may choose to be called Bob, in which anyone who knows his middle name could tease him.
Also, I’m not following your nickname that you’ve given yourself. It seems like an awful lot of mental gymnastics and a little odd. Maybe you could start signing letters, etc with LMN and see if it catches on if you really want to have that as a nickname.
Also, I’m not following your nickname that you’ve given yourself. It seems like an awful lot of mental gymnastics and a little odd. Maybe you could start signing letters, etc with LMN and see if it catches on if you really want to have that as a nickname.
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BJ isn't intuitive for Robert Jay (RJ is though), but if he goes by Beau or Bo and his middle name is well known then I think it could be a problem.
Jay is so short and snappy that I bet it would come up with any name he uses occasionally (maybe not the whole 'Robert Jay' but 'Robbie Jay' or 'Beau Jay'/'Bo Jay' if he goes by that). My middle name is May and my mom can't help but add it to my first name sometimes just because it's fun to say a short name with a one-syllable middle name stuck on the end.
Jay is so short and snappy that I bet it would come up with any name he uses occasionally (maybe not the whole 'Robert Jay' but 'Robbie Jay' or 'Beau Jay'/'Bo Jay' if he goes by that). My middle name is May and my mom can't help but add it to my first name sometimes just because it's fun to say a short name with a one-syllable middle name stuck on the end.
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I think it's highly likely that BJ is going to come up, even if he goes by Beau. MOst non-namenerds don't ask about middle names.
As for LMN/Lemon:
I agree with Mirfak. You can sign letters with Lemon and what-not, but you can't decide that's your nickname. My brother calls his wife Schoo, which drov her crazy for years. But it was his love nickname. My daughter is Miriam Elizabeth Mae. I planned on calling her Merry Mae. Her nickname is Miss Mae - because she's a force to be reckoned with, not a sweet, shy little girl.
As for LMN/Lemon:
I agree with Mirfak. You can sign letters with Lemon and what-not, but you can't decide that's your nickname. My brother calls his wife Schoo, which drov her crazy for years. But it was his love nickname. My daughter is Miriam Elizabeth Mae. I planned on calling her Merry Mae. Her nickname is Miss Mae - because she's a force to be reckoned with, not a sweet, shy little girl.
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If he *did* actually get called Bo, then it'd be an intuitive nickname. Otherwise it could just be one person's nickname for him, if it happened to fit, be liked, and stick. It's one of those things where you can't force it either way, I think. However the bearer of the name can almost always reject a nickname, and I think it would not be that hard to avoid BJ as long as one was not going by a double name already, but only by Beau / Bo.
A nickname is contrived, imo, when people plan as if they had the arbitrary power to assign a nickname according to their own taste and desire. I don't think that's how nicknames work. They're a consent / consensus thing. If the bearer likes a nickname they might self-introduce with it, but even then, any people who know them by a formal name may use that instead.
The idea of a nickname Lemon does seem like the sort of thing someone who feels affectionate might discover and playfully bestow. But not quite something you'd directly ask for. I guess you could encourage it by hinting, though - like by pointing it out to your sweetheart with delight, signing off messages to him with the initials, adopting lemons as a personal motif ... but if he doesn't take it up, there's not a whole lot more you can do.
A nickname is contrived, imo, when people plan as if they had the arbitrary power to assign a nickname according to their own taste and desire. I don't think that's how nicknames work. They're a consent / consensus thing. If the bearer likes a nickname they might self-introduce with it, but even then, any people who know them by a formal name may use that instead.
The idea of a nickname Lemon does seem like the sort of thing someone who feels affectionate might discover and playfully bestow. But not quite something you'd directly ask for. I guess you could encourage it by hinting, though - like by pointing it out to your sweetheart with delight, signing off messages to him with the initials, adopting lemons as a personal motif ... but if he doesn't take it up, there's not a whole lot more you can do.
This message was edited 10/18/2023, 8:36 PM
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I wouldn’t be expecting anyone to call me that. I just thought it would be a cute association and maybe have some themed items or something around that reminds me of it.
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A bit to convoluted. Robert Jay is far more likely to default to RJ. If the nn is Bo, then why would it further be altered to yet another nn? I would think its more of an either or situation.
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what about just BoJay?
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