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Buzz
Posted on Jan 25, 2017

12 Weird Short Forms Of

Popular Names That Make
You Go "Huh?"
How is Polly is short for Mary?!

by Kat Angus
BuzzFeed Staff, Canada

121 comments

1. Dick = Richard

Getty

Going back to the Middle Ages, there

weren't that many first names yet. And so
many people were named Richard that
everyone needed nicknames to tell one
another apart. Richard was shortened to
Rick, and then people would rhyme it with
something else to become an entirely new
name — so Rick became Dick. (And then
the modern trend of being dirty little pervs
meant that everyone today giggles when
they hear of a guy named Dick.)

2. Bill = William

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William was also a popular name in the

Middle Ages, so many nicknames were
born. It was shortened to Will, which turned
into Bill. Rhyming nicknames strike again!

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3. Nancy = Ann

Getty

Why is the short form of Ann (or Anne)

actually longer than the original name?
People used to use the affectionate phrase
"mine Ann," which eventually turned into
"my Nan." Nickname trends of the time also
had people adding "-cy" to the ends of
name, which is how Ann evolved into
Nancy.
Fun fact: This means that sisters Ann and
Nancy Wilson, members of the band Heart,
were kind of named the same thing.

4. Ted and Ned = Edward

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Yep, you've got it: "Mine Ed" turned into

"my Ned."
As for Ted, just as Richard and William were
popular names, Edward was a very
common name that required nicknames to
be created. With names that start with
vowels, people often added an easy-to-
pronounce consonant, so Ed became Ted.

5. Nellie = Helen

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Yep, Nellie is similar to Ned and Nancy.

Since, depending on your accent, the H in
Helen might be silent or difficult to say, it
was dropped and "mine Helen" turned into
"my Nell" and then into "my Nellie."

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6. Daisy and Peggy = Margaret

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It seems like there should be a long

explanation for Daisy, but it's as simple as
this: The French word for "daisy" is
"marguerite."
As for Peggy? Well, Margaret was shorted
to nicknames like Meg or Meggy, and the
rhyming nickname trend turned Meggy into
Peggy.

7. Sally = Sarah

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In the time of the Normans in the 11th and

12th centuries, people would often
substitute the letter R for other letters (in
this case it's replaced by two L's), and
would add a Y to the end as well. And so
Sarah became Sally.

8. Polly = Mary

Getty

First off, we have another case of the letter

R being replaced by two L's. Then, the
natural evolution of language turned Mary
into Molly. And yes, more rhyming
occurred, turning Molly into Polly.

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9. Hank = Henry

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No one is entirely sure how this came to

be, but a popular theory is that the name
Hendrick is the Dutch version of Henry"
Then, Henk became a nickname for
Hendrick, so English people borrowed it
and eventually it became Hank.

10. Jack = John

Getty

They have the same number of letters!

How does that save any time? There are
multiple theories about this nickname, but
here's the most likely one: Back in the 11th
and 12th centuries, the Normans would
have pronounced "John" as "Jen." They also
added "-kin" to the ends of names as
nicknames. So, Jen turned into Jenkin,
which eventually turned into Jakin, and
finally into Jack.

11. Chuck = Charles

Getty

This one's a little simpler: In Middle English,

Charles was actually Chukken. (Yes, really.)

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12. Buffy = Elizabeth

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There aren't even any F's in "Elizabeth"!

Come on! But in this case, it's a nickname
based on how a child might pronounce the
final syllable — Elizabeth becomes Beth,
which becomes Buff, and then becomes
Buffy. (So, yes, the full title of the show
should have been Elizabeth the Vampire
Slayer.)

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121 comments
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Order by: Most Hearts Most Recent

TiggaPlease
5 years ago

I'm sorry, I can't help it:

How do you get Dick from Richard?

You ask him nicely.

68 Show replies (1)

daniellem48
5 years ago

My friend's boyfriend is named Tim and I

always call him Timberley like Kimberley.
Not sure why this is relevant but I think it's
funny
48 Show replies (2)

JulieMarie
5 years ago

Elizabeth Nancy Summers. Played by

Sally Michelle Gellar.
40 Show replies (2)

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