Names That Mean Form

Cosy is a, well, cozy name, whose only downside is people forever making that dumb joke. Cosy can be short for Cosima or Cosette but can certainly stand on its own as a word name. Another plus: Sounds like Posy, Josie, and Rosie.

Spence is occasionally used as a name all on its own and it has more of a sense of completeness than many nickname-names.

Mingo is a cute nickname of the Spanish version of Dominic. It's not to be confused with Mungo, the name of the patron saint of Glasgow.

Coletta is a Latin relative of the better-known French Colette, which is derived from Nicole and is ultimately a feminization of Nicholas. Only a handful of baby girls are named Coletta or Nicoletta in the US each year, making this one of the rarest of the many forms of the name.

Dinand is popular in the Netherlands thanks to a local singing sensation. Dinand is one of many Dutch short forms that come from the middle or end of a name -- think Bas for Sebastian or Hans from Johannes -- rather than from the beginning as is more usual in the U.S. and UK, though we're catching on.

Bennett doesn't really need feminizing — over 100 baby girls in 2020 were given the name as it is — but if you need to make it clear that it's a girl name, Bennette is one way to do that.

Pleun is a unisex Dutch name deriving from Apollonius or Apollonia, although now it ranks far higher for girls in its native land than the original form.

Affable and creative and perfectly able to stand alone; nothing Scroogish about it.

This feminine form of Ambrose has not seem much use in the United States, but it does sometimes appear on the birth certificates of those from Cajun or Creole backgrounds.

A Slavic variation of Helen that might make an unusual update of that classic name.

Betsan is little-known outside of the U.K. but it could provide an intriguing alternative to Liz, Beth, Betsy, Betty, and Libby.

Andrina is best-known as an older sister of The Little Mermaid.

Alternative spelling of Dennis, and the usual transliteration from Ukrainian. Used (though rarely) for both sexes.

Sounds a bit like a nickname in a Dickens novel, but this short form was used in New England a few centuries ago, back when names like Micajah were popular. Both short and long forms are now ripe for revival.

Zakk is an ekstra-kinetic spelling of a short form that's more and more often standing on its own, also as Zac, Zak, Zach, and Zack. This version is largely associated with musician Zakk Wylde.

With the growing popularity of Celia and Cecilia, this vintage canasta-playing nickname name could be due for a comeback.

A Roman name that's unused by English speakers today, but might appeal as a shorter, lighter alternative to Aurelia. The Latin vocabulary word aula also meant "hall".

Lenia is part Lena and part Leni, a full name that started life as a short form of most any name ending or beginning with a Len sound. While Lena was used for more than 1000 baby girls in the US last year and Leni was used for nearly 100, Lenia was given to fewer than five. But Lenia is one of the most popular baby girl names in Switzerland.

Sometimes used a Dutch diminutive of Marie, the meaning of which is uncertain. Theories include "drop of the sea" (from Hebrew roots mar "drop" and yam "sea"); "bitter" (from Hebrew marah "bitterness"); and "beloved" (from the Egyptian root mr).