Nicknames in 2004: Social display names · 538

This page treats nicknames as social technology: how they form, when they should be retired, and why they still are not destiny. Usually not. It can become one through use plus a later petition, but the default is informal. Phonetic shortening, affection, disambiguation (three Sams), and sometimes cruelty.

Socially yes; enforcement is the hard part. Workplaces increasingly treat chosen short names as a courtesy rule. Are Korean and Japanese honorifics nicknames? No. -ssi, -nim, -san are grammatical politeness. Pet names sit beside them. Sometimes a short form is filed as the legal given name (Harry, Bess). Official lists mix legal strings, not playground talk.

It is the forced use of a rejected name — often the old legal given name, sometimes an old nickname. The ethics are about consent. Informality can warm a mark and also look sloppy. See brand-naming. Most countries ignore nicknames until they appear on cheques, bylines or fraud. Before hereditary surnames, many “last names” were nicknames that stuck. The unofficial layer is older than the official one.