44 Trendy Nicknames for Your Baby
For a while, it looked like nickname names were on their way out. Baby William was called William and not Billy or Willie, and James was James, not Jimmy or Jim. That part still holds true to a great extent, but suddenly there’s a whole raft of fresh-sounding nicknames, many of them throwback baby names — for girlsand boys — making a return. Strangely enough, some of the oldest are the most appealing and most creative baby names. A number of these baby names are popular enough to be used on their own. Scroll on for some of the hottest new nicknames right now, along with the older forms they’ve replaced.
Trendy Nicknames for Girls
- Bee for Beatrice, along with the still used Bea.
- Cat and Cate for Catherine — no more Cathy.
- Cece for Cecily, who used to be Sissy.
- Charlie and Lottie for Charlotte — and we’ve even heard Chaz.
- Dot is back as the short form of Dorothy, as is Dolly. Bye bye, Dodie.
- Drea for Andrea, who is no longer Andie.
- Elsie and Libby for Elizabeth, replacing Liz and Beth — and Betty may be joining them soon.
- Fifi and Posy are back in for Josephine, along with the still popular Josie.
- Florrie and Flossie — these Bobbsey Twinish nicknames are back on the horizon for Florence, alternatives to Flo.
- Frankie is firmly in for Frances, replacing Fran and Fanny, one of several boyish early 20th century nicknames now found on girls.
- Gertie is so much more retro-cute for Gertrude than Trudy.
- Jules/Jools for Julia, rather than Julie.
- Kitty is edging out Kathy for Katherines, with the sophisticated Kay also under the radar.
- Lulu for Lucinda, replacing Cindy. She’s also being used for Tallulah.
- Maisie for Margaret, the new, but older Maggie.
- May back for Mary, stepping in for Molly.
- Minnie for Wilhelmina, who used to be Willie or Billie or Mina.
- Nell for Eleanor, who’s often still Ellie; Nell is also now used for Penelope.
- Nico for Nicole, fresher than Nicky.
- Sadie, the old-time nickname for Sarah is back.
- Thea for Cynthia, who used to be Cindy; also for Dorothea.
- Tillie for Matilda, rather than Mattie.
- Trixie for Beatrix, along with Bea.
- Vivi for Vivienne, more fun than just plain Viv.
- Zuzu for Susanna, who’s no longer Susie.
Trendy Nicknames for Boys
- Alfie and Freddie for Alfred, not Al — thanks to the Brits for pointing the way.
- Benno for Benjamin and other Bens — far fresher than Benjie.
- Bertie for Albert, who’s no longer Al, and for Robert, no longer Bobby.
- Bram for Abraham and Abram, replacing Abe.
- Cale for Caleb, an update of Cal.
- Cole for Nicholas, which is cooler than Nick.
- Drew for Andrew, rather than Andy.
- Gus for August and Augustus, not Augie.
- Hank and Hal coming back for Henry, thanks in part to some celebs.
- Jem in for Jim, via To Kill a Mockingbird.
- Joss for Joseph and Joshua, the newer Joe and Josh.
- Kit for Christopher, back in for Chris.
- Ned is back replacing Ed/Eddie for Edward.
- Ozzie for Oscar.
- Rafe for Raphael and Ralph.
- Sasha is the Russian nickname for Alexander (and Alexandra), rather than Alex.
- Theo is now firmly in place for Theodore, standing in for Ted and Teddy — who themselves may return.
- Ward is another Ed replacement for Edward.
- Will is the new Bill, though of course Liam has moved in as the other, mega popular Irish short form of William.
What’s your favorite nickname? Tweet us @BritandCo and let us know!
This post was previously published on Nameberry by Linda Rosenkrantz.
(Photos via Getty)