Associate the right birthname with a nickname in ancestry research.
As I have researched the background of individuals in my family, I regularly find their birth names, nicknames, initials, and variations in documents, correspondence, and other references to these individuals.
Nicknames in Author Schreiber family
For example, my father was named James, but he was referred to as “Frip,” which was listed in his obituary, news articles, gravestone, correspondence, and other records to his friends. If I didn’t know my dad and the story behind the nickname, I would have had difficulty associating the two names as being one individual. Every one of my dad’s brothers had nicknames they used as their first name. I regularly used these nicknames throughout my lifelong association with them. I didn’t know their real names until I was into my adult years. I referred to my uncles as:
- Uncle Wimp (First name: Author)
- Uncle Bob (First name: Robert)
- Uncle Giggs (First name: Lawrence)
- Uncle Stu (First name: Kent)
My uncle Wimp was named after the Popeye cartoon character Wimpy because he liked to eat lots of hamburgers. My dad, I was told, was named after an emotional caricature name “Fripolina,” who was whining and crying. As a child, he was constantly whing and thus received the name “Frip.” Those were stories I was told.
Overview of nicknames
Nicknames can give us real difficulty, especially when trying to establish the family’s actual size, connect an individual (s) through the census, or even associate different records to the same person.
Common names can have a variety of nicknames, for example:
- Katherine with nicknames Kate, Kathy, Katie, Katy, Kay, Kit, Kitty
- Michael with nicknames Micah, Michl, Mick, Mickey, Micky, Mike, Mischa
Nicknames were tricky for me when I started to research the background of individuals about whom I was writing stories. For example, Fanny (Frances) and Polly (Mary) gave me some difficulty figuring out who they were. Once I realized that people were using nicknames, I started searching for nicknames and their associated birth names to give me a better chance of associating the right person with the same generation’s proper documents.
I have found it common for nicknames can be formed from the beginning and endings of words such as
- Aggy from names starting “Ag.”
- Ed from names starting with “Edd.”
- Essy from names starting with “Es.”
- Field from names ending with “Field.”
- Issy from names ending with “Is.”
- Lee from names starting with “Le.”
- Lena from names ending with “Leen, Lima.”
- Lina from names ending with “Lena, Lina.”
- Lynn from names ending with “Lene, Lina, Lyn.”
Articles to assist in the first name and nickname association research
I have prepared four lists that focus on associating nicknames with proper names to help you when researching individuals. This list contains common first names and nicknames from the last 250 years. The lists are not inclusive but will give you an excellent start to decipher nicknames given to individuals by their family, friends and associates. The lists are
- Search 494 Male Birth Names and Associated Nicknames. This article lists common male birth names from the last 250 years associated that have been associated with the name.
- Search 606 Female Birth Names and Associated Nicknames. This article lists common female birthnames from the last 250 years associated that have been associated with the name.
- Search 582 Male Nicknames and Associated Birth Names. This article lists the common male nicknames from the last 250 years and their associated birth name.
- Search 702 Female Nicknames and Associated Birth Names. This article lists common female nicknames from the last 250 years and their associated birth name.
Search 494 Male Birth Names and Associated Nicknames
Click on the alphabet letter, and you will be taken to where the list of names begins. Please feel free to email me the first names and nicknames of your family, and we will add them to the list.
| A | B | C | D | E |
| F | G | H | I | J |
| K | L | M | N | O |
| P | Q | R | S | T |
| U | V | W | XYZ |
_____________A____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Aaron | Erin, Ron, Ronnie |
| Abel | Ab, Abe, Eb, Ebbie, Nab |
| Abiah | A.B. , Ab, Biah |
| Abiel | Ab, Biel |
| Abijah | A.B. , Ab, Biah, Bige |
| Abner | Ab |
| Abraham | Abe, Abram |
| Abram | Abe |
| Absalom | Ab, Abbie, App |
| Adam | Ad, Ade |
| Adelbert | Ad, Ade, Albert, Bert, Del, Delbert |
| Adeline | Ada |
| Adolph | Ad |
| Adolph | Dolph, Olph |
| Adolphus | Ad, Dolph, Olph |
| Adrian | Rian |
| Aggy | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Ag” |
| Alan | Al, Al |
| Alanson | Al, Alan, Lonson |
| Alastair | Al |
| Alazama | Ali |
| Albert | A, Ab, Al, Bert, Bertie, Elbert |
| Alberto | Beto |
| Aldrich | Al, Rich, Richie |
| Alexander | Al, Alec, Alex, Eleck, Sandy, Zander |
| Alexanr | Eck |
| Alfons | Alf |
| Alfred | Al, Alf, Fred |
| Algernon | Algy |
| Allen | Al |
| Alonzo | Al, Lon, Lonnie, Lonzo |
| Amos | Moses |
| Anderson | Ander, Andy, Sonny |
| Andreas | Andrl, Andy |
| Andrew | Andy, Drew |
| Anthony | Tony |
| Anton | Toni, Tony |
| Aquilla | Quil, Quill, Quilla, Quillar, Quillie |
| Archibald | Arch, Archie, Archy, Baldo |
| Aristotle | Aris, Telly |
| Arnold | Arnie, Arny |
| Aron | Ron |
| Artelepsa | Epsey |
| Artemis | Art |
| Artemus | Art |
| Arthur | Art, Arty |
| Asahel | Asa |
| Asaph | Asa |
| Asenath | Sene |
| Athanasius | Atha, Atta |
| Athanatious | Atha, Atta |
| August | Augie, Gus |
| Augustin | Austin |
| Augustine | August, Austin, Gus |
| Augustus | August, Austin, Gus |
| Azariah | Aze, Riah, Tiah |
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_____________B____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Babe | Name given to the youngest or baby of the family |
| Barnabas | Barney |
| Bartholomew | Bart, Bartel, Bartl, Barty, Bat, Mees, Meus |
| Barticus | Bart |
| Bazaleel | Basil |
| Benedict | Ben, Bennie |
| Benjamin | Ben, Benjy, Bennie, Jamie |
| Bernard | Barney, Berney, Berry |
| Bertram | Bert |
| Boetius | Bo |
| Bradford | Brad, Ford |
| Brian | Bryan, Bryant |
| Broderick | Brady, Brody, Ricky |
| Burton | Burt |
| Butch | Butch ( In some families when father and son have same name, father (Sr) goes by his first name, while the son (Jr) is nicknamed “Butch.”) |
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_____________C____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Caleb | Cal |
| California | Callie |
| Calvin | Cal, Vin, Vinny |
| Cameron | Cam, Ron, Ronny |
| Campbell | Cam |
| Carl | Charles, Karl |
| Carl | Charles, Karl |
| Casey | K.C. |
| Casper | Jasper |
| Caswell | Cass |
| Cedric | Ced, Rick, Ricky |
| Charles | Carl, Charley, Charlie, Chick, Chuck |
| Chauncey | Chan |
| Chesley | Chet |
| Chester | Chet |
| Christian | Chris, Kit |
| Christopher | Chris, Kit, Stophel |
| Clarence | Clair, Clare |
| Cleatus | Cleat |
| Clement | Clem |
| Clementine | Clem |
| Cleveland | Cleve |
| Clifford | Cliff, Ford |
| Clifton | Cliff |
| Clifton | Tony |
| Cole | Colie |
| Columbus | Clum, Lum |
| Conrad | Con, Connie, Conny |
| Cornelius | Con, Conny, Corny, Cory, Neil |
| Courtney | Court, Curt |
| Curtis | Curt |
| Cuthbert | Bert, Cuddy |
| Cyrenius | Cene, Cy, Renius, Serene, Swene |
| Cyrus | Cy, Si |
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_____________D____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Dalton | Dahl, Dal |
| Daniel | Dan, Danny |
| David | Dave, Davey, Davy, Day |
| Delbert | Bert, Del |
| Dennis | Denny |
| Dennison | Denny |
| Derrick | Dirch, Eric, Rick, Ricky |
| Deuteronomy | Duty |
| Dickson | Dick |
| Diedrich | Dierk |
| Dominic | Nick |
| Donald | Don, Donny |
| Douglas | Doug |
| Duane | Dewey |
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_____________E____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Earnest | Ernie |
| Ebenezer | Ben, Eb, Ebbie, Eben |
| Ed | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Ed” |
| Edgar | Ed, Eddie |
| Edgar | Eddy |
| Edmund | Ed, Eddie, Eddy, Ned, Ted |
| Edward | Ed, Eddie, Eddy, Ned, Neil, Tad, Ted, Teddy |
| Edwin | Ed, Eddie, Eddy, Ned, Win, Winn |
| Egbert | Bert, Burt |
| Elbert | Elbert |
| Elbertson | Elbert, Bert |
| Eleazer | Lazar |
| Elias | El, Eli, Lee, Lias |
| Elijah | Eli, Lig, Lige, Lije |
| Eliphalel | Life |
| Eliphalet | Left |
| Elisha | Eli |
| Ellswood | Elsey, Elsie, Elze, Elsey, Elsie, Elze |
| Elwood | Woody |
| Emanuel | Manny, Manuel |
| Emmanuel | Manly, Manny |
| Epaphroditius | Dite, Ditus, Dyce, Dyche, Eppa |
| Ephraim | Eph |
| Erasmus | Rasmus |
| Eric | Rick |
| Ernest | Ernie |
| Erwin | Irwin |
| Eugene | Gene |
| Ezekiel | Ez, Zeke |
| Ezra | Ez |
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_____________F____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Felipe | Leno |
| Ferdinand | Ferdie, Fred |
| Field | Nickname given to persons with names ending with “Field” |
| Floyd | Lloyd |
| Frances | Fan, Frankie, Fran, Frank |
| Francis | Frankie |
| Francisco | Pacho, Paco, Pancho |
| Frank | Ferry |
| Franklin | Fran, Frank, Frankie |
| Franz | Ferry, Franzl |
| Frederick | Derick, Fred, Freddie, Freddy, Fritz, Rick, Fred |
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_____________G____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Gabriel | Gab, Gabby, Gabe |
| Galvin | Vin |
| Garrick | Rick |
| Geoffrey | Geoff, Jeff |
| Georg | Girgl, Schorsch |
| George Washington | G.W., Wash |
| Gerald | Gerry, Jerry |
| Gerhardt | Gay |
| Gilbert | Bert, Bertie, Gil, Wilber, Will |
| Giuseppe | Beppe, Peppe, Beppino |
| Gottfried | Fred |
| Governor | Govie |
| Gregory | Greg |
| Guilelmus | William |
| Gustaf | Gus |
| Gustav | Gus |
| Gustavus | Gus |
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_____________H____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Hamilton | Ham |
| Hans | Hansl |
| Harlan | Harley |
| Harold | Hal, Harry |
| Harry | Harold, Henry |
| Heinrich | Heiner, Heinz |
| Henry | Hal, Hank, Harry |
| Herbert | Bert, Herb |
| Hezekiah | Hez, Hy, Kiah |
| Hiram | Hiley, Hy |
| Hopkins | Hop, Hopp |
| Horace | Harry, Horry |
| Hosea | Hosey, Hosie |
| Howard | Hal, Howie |
| Hubert | Bert, Hub, Hugh |
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_____________I____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Ian | John |
| Ignacio | Nacho |
| Ignatius | Iggy, Nace, Nate, Natius, Nazi |
| Immanuel | Manly, Manny |
| India | Indie, Indy |
| Indiana | Indie, Indy |
| Irvin | Irving |
| Irwin | Erwin |
| Isaac | Ike, Zac, Zak, Zeke |
| Isaiah | Zadie, Zay |
| Isidore | Izzy |
| Issy | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Is” |
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_____________J____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Jack | Bud |
| Jackson | Jack |
| Jacob | Jaap, Jake, Jay |
| Jacobus | Jaap, Jake, Jay |
| Jahoda | Hoda, Hodie, Hody |
| Jakob | Jakl |
| James | Jamie, Jem, Jim, Jimmy |
| Jameson | Jamie |
| Jasper | Joshua |
| Jayme | Jay |
| Jedediah | Jed |
| Jeduthan | Jed |
| Jefferson | Jeff, Sonny |
| Jeffrey | Geoff, Jeff |
| Jehiel | Hiel |
| Jehu | Gee, Hugh |
| Jeremiah | Jereme, Jeremy, Jerry |
| Jerold | Jerry |
| Johan | Hans |
| Johann | Hans |
| Johannes | Hans |
| John | Jack, Jock, Johnnie, Johnny |
| Jonathan | John, Jon, Nathan |
| José | Pepe |
| Josef | Beppo, Jos, Sepp, Seppl, Yost |
| Josefa | Beppl, Pepa |
| Joseph | Guiseppe, Jody, Joe, Joey, Jos, Sepp |
| Joshua | Jos, Josh |
| Josiah | Jos, Si |
| Judah | Jude, Judy |
| Judson | Jud, Sonny |
| Julian | Jule |
| Julias | Jule |
| Junior | JR, June, Junie |
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_____________K____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Kasey | K.C. |
| Kendall | Ken, Kenny |
| Kendrick | Ken, Kenny |
| Kenneth | Ken, Kenny |
| Kingsley | King |
| Kingston | King |
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_____________L____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Lafayette | Fate, Fayette, Laffie, Leff |
| Lamont | Monty |
| Laurence | Larry, Lon, Lonny, Lorne, Lorry, Monty |
| Lawrence | Larry, Lawrey, Lon, Lonny, Lorne, Lorry |
| Lee | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Le” |
| Lemuel | Lem |
| Leonard | Len, Lenny, Leo, Leon, Lineau |
| Leonidas | Lee, Leon |
| LeRoy | L.R. , Lance, Lee, Roy |
| Leslie | Les |
| Lester | Les |
| Levi | Lee |
| Lewis | Lew |
| Lincoln | Link |
| Lincoln | Link |
| Lionel | Leon |
| Littleberry | Berry, L.B., Little |
| Lorenzo | Loren, Ransy |
| Louis | Lou, Louie |
| Lucas | Luke |
| Lucias | Luke |
| Luther | Luke |
| Lyndon | Lindy, Lynn |
| Lynn | Nickname given to persons with names ending with “Lene, Lina, Lyn” |
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_____________M____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Mac (k) | Nickname given to persons with names starting with Mac or Mc |
| MacDonald | Mack |
| Mackenzie | Kenzy, Mac, Mack |
| Malachi | Mal |
| Malcolm | Mal |
| Manoah | Noah |
| Manuel | Emanuel, Manny |
| Marcus | Mark |
| Martin | Marty |
| Martine | Tine |
| Marvin | Marv |
| Mathew | Mat, Matt, Thias, Thys |
| Matthias | Hias, Hiasl, Matt, Si, Thias, Thys |
| Maurice | Maury, Morey |
| Mavery | Mave |
| Maximilian | Max |
| Maxwell | Max |
| Mc | Nickname given to persons with names starting with Mac or Mc |
| Melchizedek | Dick, Zadock |
| Melvin | Mel |
| Meredith | Meridy |
| Mervin | Merv |
| Mervyn | Merv |
| Meshach | Shack |
| Micajah | Cager, Macager |
| Michael | Micah, Michl, Mick, Mickey, Micky, Mike, Mischa |
| Milton | Milt |
| Mitchell | Mitch |
| Monteleon | Monte |
| Montesque | Monty |
| Montgomery | Monty |
| Morris | Morey |
| Mortimer | Mort, Morty |
| Mortimer | Mort |
| Morton | Mort, Morty |
| Moses | Mode |
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_____________N____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Napoleon | Leon, Nap, Nappy |
| Nathan | Nate |
| Nathaniel | Fanny, Nat, Nate, Nathan, Natty, Than |
| Newton | Newt |
| Nicholas | Claas, Claes, Claus, Klaus, Nick |
| Nicodemus | Nick |
| Norbert | Bert |
| Norman | Norm |
| Norton | Ned |
| Nowell | Noel |
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_____________O____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Obadiah | Diah, Dyer, Obed, Obie, Dyer, Obed |
| Odell | Odo |
| Oliver | Ollie |
| Onicyphorous | Cy, Cyphorus, One, Osaforum,Osaforus, Syphorous |
| Ophrah | Offie |
| Orlando | Roland |
| Oswald | Ossy, Ozzy, Waldo |
| Otis | Ode, Ote |
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_____________P____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Patrick | Paddy, Pat, Pate, Patsy, Peter, Rick |
| Paul | Pablo |
| Pelegrine | Perry |
| Percival | Percy |
| Persephone | Seph,Sephy |
| Peter | Pate, Pete |
| Petr | Pete |
| Philetus | Leet, Phil |
| Philip | Phil |
| Phineas | Finney |
| Pleasant | Pleas |
| Posthuma | Humey |
| Prescott | Pres, Scott, Scotty |
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_____________Q____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
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_____________R____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Raleigh | Riley |
| Randall | Ran, Randy |
| Randolph | Dolph, Randy |
| Raphael | Ralph |
| Raymond | Pug, Ray |
| Reginald | Naldo, Reg, Reggie, Renny, Ron |
| Reuben | Rube |
| Reynold | Reginald |
| Richard | Dick, Dickie, Dickon, Dixie, Rich, Richie, Richy, Rick, Ricky |
| Robert | Bob, Bobbie, Bobby, Dob, Dobbin, Rob, Robbie, Robby, Robin, Bob, Bobby, Dob, Dobbin, Hob, Hobkin, Rob, Robby, Robin, Rupert |
| Roderick | Rick Rod |
| Rodger | Hodge, Rod, Roge |
| Rodney | Rod |
| Rodrigo | Rod |
| Roger | Hodge, Rod, Roge |
| Roland | Lanny, Rolling, Rollo, Roll, Naldo, Ron, Ronny |
| Ronald | Ron, Ronnie |
| Roscoe | Ross |
| Rudolf | Rudi |
| Rudolph | Dolph, Olph, Rolf, Rudy |
| Rudolphus | Dolph, Olph, Rolf, Rudy |
| Russell | Russ, Rusty |
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_____________S____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Salome | Loomie |
| Salvador | Sal |
| Sampson | Sam |
| Samson | Sam |
| Samuel | Sam, Sammie, Sammy |
| Sanford | Sandy |
| Scott | Sceeter, Squat, Scottie |
| Sebastian | Bass, Bastl, Seby |
| Sebastian | Sebby |
| Selma | Anselm |
| Seymour | Morey |
| Shadrach | Shade |
| Shelton | Shel, Shelly, Tony |
| Sheridan | Dan, Danny, Sher |
| Sherman | Sherm |
| Shobel | Shuba |
| Sidney | Sid, Syd |
| Sigfired | Sid |
| Sigfrid | Sid |
| Sigismund | Sig |
| Silas | Si |
| Silvanus | Sell |
| Simeon | Si, Sion |
| Simon | Si, Sion |
| Smith | Smitty |
| Socrates | Crate |
| Solomon | Sal, Salmon, Saul, Sol, Solly, Zolly |
| Spencer | Spence |
| Stan | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Stan” |
| Stanislas | Stan |
| Stanly | Stan |
| Stefan | Steff |
| Stephen | Steph, Steve, Steven |
| Steven | Steph, Steve |
| Stewart | Stew |
| Sullivan | Sully, Van |
| Sydney | Sid |
| Sylvanus | Sly, Syl |
| Sylvester | Sell, Si, Sly, Sy, Syl, Vessie, Vester, Vet |
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_____________T____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Terence | Terry |
| Thaddeus | Tad, Thad, Tad |
| Theobald | Theo |
| Theodore | Dode, Dody, Tad, Ted, Teddy, Theo |
| Theophilus | Theo |
| Thomas | Damerl, Thom, Tom, Tommy |
| Timothy | Tim, Timmy |
| Tobiah | Tobi |
| Tobias | Bias, Tobi, Toby |
| Ty | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Ty” |
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_____________U____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Uriah | Riah |
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_____________V____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Valentine | Feltie, Felty |
| VanBuren | Buren |
| Vernon | Vern |
| Victor | Vic |
| Vida | David |
| Vincent | Vin, Vince, Vinny |
| Vinson | Vin, Vince, Vinny |
| Virgil | Virg |
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_____________W____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Waldo | Oswald |
| Wallace | Wally, Wally |
| Walter | Wally, Walt |
| Washington | Wash |
| Webster | Web |
| Wesley | Wes |
| Wilber | Will |
| Wilbur | Will |
| Wiley | Will, Willie, Willy |
| Wilfred | Fred, Will, Willie |
| William | Bela, Bell, Bill, Billy, Liam, Will, Willie, Willy |
| Willie | Nickname given to persons with names starting with “Wil” |
| Willis | Bill, Willy |
| Winfield | Field, Win, Winny |
| Winifred | Fred |
| Winton | Wint |
| Woodrow | Drew, Wood, Woody |
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_____________XYZ____________
| Male Birth Names | Associated Male Nicknames |
| Xaver | Ferry |
| Zachariah | Riah, Rias, Rye, Zach, Zachy, Zack, Zeke |
| Zachary | Zach |
| Zadock | Dick, Dock, Zed |
| Zaven | Zee |
| Zebedee | Zeb |
| Zebulon | Zeb |
| Zedediah | Diah, Dyer, Zed |
| Zephaniah | Zeph |
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