Celebs are Crazy for Nickname Names!
By Linda Rosenkrantz
Nickname names are hot! Who by now hasn’t met, for instance, a girl named Sam or Charlie? And nobody loves a nickname name more than celebrities, and many of them have displayed a lot of originality, discovering and reviving long forgotten relics. Here are some of the most outstanding recent starbaby nickname names. We’re focused on the girls for now, but look for the boys’ list coming soon.
ANDY—Jack and Lisa Osbourne gave two of their three daughters nickname names—perhaps inspired by grandad Ozzie (born John). For their middle child, Andy Rose, born in 2015, they chose one rarely heard for a girl: actress Andie MacDowell (born Rosalie Anderson) uses a different spelling.
BILLIE—A boyish nickname with some great namesakes, picked by Rebecca Gayheart and Eric Dane. Billie was #79 in 1930.
BIRDIE—In 2008 actress Busy Philipps named her baby girl Birdie (inspired by First Lady Lady Bird Johnson), followed by Maura West’s Birdie West the next year. Birdie, now Number 346 on Nameberry, Birdie was in the 150s at the end of the 19th century.
BUNNY—Affectionate pet name Bunny hopped onto the birth certificate of model Katie Price’s daughter.
DOLLY—A nickname name that goes back to Dolley (sic) Madison, it was modernized by Rebecca Romijn and Jerry O’Connell for one of their twin girls
DUSTY–A nickname long associated with singer Dusty Springfield (born Mary), Dusty was picked up and dusted off by Behati Prinsloo and Adam Levine in 2016.
EDIE—The warm and friendly diminutive of Edith was chosen by two Brits—Keira Knightly and Samantha Morton. And not all that surprisingly, since Edie is up at #135 in England.
ELSIE—This old Scottish Elizabeth diminutive is definitely having a revival, now at #31 in England, 90 on Nameberry and 301 across the US. It’s been picked by singer James Morrison, and by Ioan Gruffudd for his sweetly named little Elsie Marigold.
FRANKIE—The year after Drew Barrymore chose this for her daughter in 2014, Frankie bounced back onto the girls’ Top 1000 list—after a 41-year hiatus.
GOLDIE—Another golden oldie, Goldie was chosen for their daughters by Ione Skye and shoemeister Steve Madden. It’s #851 on Nameberry.
HATTIE—Harriet may not be back, but nn Hattie is: it reentered the Top 1000 not long after the birth of Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott’s Hattie Margaret.
IZZY—Familiar as a short form of Isabel, Isabella, etc, but rarely used on its own, especially for girls, but that all changed with Grey’s Anatomy. Eddie Murphy was inspired to use it for his daughter in 2016—his ninth child.
JOSIE—A major success among nickname revivals, Josie now ranks at #201. Actor Scott Caan’s daughter is Josie James—a nod to grandpa James Caan.
LULU/LULA—In the past couple of years, Haylie Duff named her daughter the stylish, ebullient Lulu, while Liv Tyler chose the similar Lula.
MILLIE—Vintage frilly Millie has become thoroughly modernized, ranking at #355 in the US in 2017, #20 in Scotland, and #34 in England, and now represented by Stranger Things young British star Millie Bobby Brown. Musician Curtis Rempel is one recent dad of a Millie.
MINNIE—Minnie Theodora Osbourne is the sister of Andy Rose and Pearl Clementine; and Maya Rudolph named one of her daughters Minnie to honor her late mother, the acclaimed singer Minnie Ripperton. So now Minnie has officially broken her engagement to Mickey Mouse.
NIXIE—Nixie may not be strictly speaking a nickname, being a German name for a water sprite, but it sure sounds like one. Chad Lowe moved out of the box when he chose it for his daughter.
POLLY—This sweet old-time diminutive of Mary could be making a comeback as a successor to Molly. Actress Erika Christensen chose it just this year.
RAY—Sometimes used as a middle name for girls in the past (more often spelled Rae), as in Miley Ray Cyrus, but journalist Lisa Ling moved it into first place for her second daughter.
STEVIE—Stevie Nicks was born Stephanie, but now there are a growing number of girl Stevies standing on their own, including the daughter of Brooklyn Decker and Andy Roddick, born this year.
SUNNY—Adam Sandler picked two upbeat nicknamey monikers for his girls—Sadie and Sunny; Michael “Flea” Balzary has a Sunny Bebop.
WINNIE—Winnie is a winner that got her celebrity cred via Jimmy Fallon, who was inspired by the lake where he and his wife Nancy became engaged—Lake Winnipesaukee. (shown)
ZUZU—The zippy Czech nickname for Susan heard every Christmas on the young daughter in It’s a Wonderful Life was used as a full name by Top Chef Tania Peterson.
What’s your favorite female nickname name?