User-created list
Names by Nickname
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Lea
Variation of Lee or Leah
"meadow; weary"
While traditionally pronounced as a homonym for Lee, Glee actress Lea Michele pronounces her name like Leah, and it may also rhyme with Freya. Regardless of your preferred pronunciation, it's…
Bear
Animal name
"bear"
Bear has suddenly lumbered onto the baby name landscape. Perhaps inspired by British adventurer Bear Grylls (born Edward Michael), first celebrity chef Jamie Oliver used it as the middle name for his…
Rex
Latin
"king"
Now that many dogs are named Max, it's safe to use this sleek, solid, regal name again for your child. And with the charm of its final x , its regal meaning, and its offbeat simplicity, Rex is…
Lance
English word name or English variation of Lanzo, German "long, pointed, medieval weapon; land"
"long, pointed, medieval weapon; land"
Though the fuller Lancelot has for the most part been shunned as a 'too-much-name' name, the short form Lance has been consistently in or around the Top 500 since 1938, climbing as high as Number 76…
Tilly
Diminutive of Matilda
"battle-mighty"
A favorite in England and Wales where nicknames as given names are very much the norm, Tilly has the potential to catch on in the US, given its similarity to the popular Lily and Ellie and the rising…
Linda
Spanish, Portuguese and Italian
"pretty"
Linda will live forever in baby name history for toppling Mary from its four hundred year reign as Number 1. Queen of Names in 1947, Linda has fallen even further in favor than Mary today. Still,…
Greta
German, diminutive of Margarethe
"pearl"
Greta is an Old World name long tied to the iconic Garbo, but now synonymous with environmental activism. In the early 2000s, Greta was showing signs of a comeback, along with other Old Hollywood…
Beck
English
"small stream"
The popular single-named alternative singer (born Bek) has given this cool nature-meets-surname name a new lease of life. Another notable bearer is Beck Weathers, a Texan pathologist who survived the…
Maddie
Diminutive of Madeline or Madison, English
"woman from Magdala or son of Matthew"
Britney Spears' little sister Jamie Lynn was one of the first to put this nickname on the birth certificate. Cute for a child, but we recommend giving her the option of the full name for later use.
Etta
English and Scottish, short form of any name ending with -etta: Henrietta, Loretta etc.
Thanks to the surprise hit revival of Etta James' song At Last and because of recent interest in vintage style nicknames, Etta has established herself as a possible successor to Emma and Ella. While…
Ricky
English diminutive of Richard or Frederick
"dominant ruler; peaceful ruler"
Gone with Richard and Rick, Ricky has been falling since the turn of the 21st century. Probably still suffering from overuse in the 1990s.
Zora
Serbo-Croatian
"dawn"
Zora is a meaningful literary heroine name honoring Zora Neale Hurston, an important black writer and leader of the Harlem Renaissance. Spelled Zorah, it is a biblical place name, and is also the…
Van
Dutch
"of"
Whether it's used as a short form or on its own, this jazzy midcentury name is poised for a comeback along with brothers Ray and Walt. More often heard as a surname prefix (e.g. Vincent van Gogh,…
Alec
Diminutive or Scottish form of Alexander, Greek
"defending men"
Alec, a clipped British short form of Alexander, is less fresh than Alex, but leans more off-beat classic than Xander. Used since at least the 19th-century, Alec became particularly popular in the…
Toby
Diminutive of Tobias, Greek, Hebrew
"God is Good"
Sweet and spirited, kindly and handsome, posh and approachable, Toby is a versatile nickname, popular in the UK as a stand-alone choice, but familiar in the Netherlands and New Zealand too. In the…
Joe
Diminutive of Joseph
"Jehovah increases"
Joe is still the ultimate good-guy name, not at all diminished by its longevity or popularity or its everyman rep as Regular Joe, Cowboy Joe, G.I. Joe, Joe Exotic, Joe Blow, Joe Millionaire, Average…
Scout
Word name
"one who gathers information covertly"
Scout, a character nickname from To Kill a Mockingbird (her real name was Jean Louise), became a real-life possibility when Bruce Willis and Demi Moore used it for their now-grown middle daughter,…
Abe
Diminutive of Abraham. Hebrew
"father of multitudes"
Old-time nickname that's following in the fashionable footsteps of cronies Jake and Sam. Abe feels both fresher and cuter -- which is maybe the same thing? -- than those choices right now. You can…
Ad
Ad is a concise masculine name that primarily functions as a shortened form of names beginning with these letters, such as Adam, Adrian, or Addison. With just two letters, it stands as one of the…
Addie
Diminutive of Adelaide or Adeline
Old-fashioned nickname with sweet turn-of-the-last-century charm that's become a favorite among the popular girl names starting with A of today. In fact, with all spellings of Adeline/Adalynn taken…