Nicknames

I just hollered into the living room, "All right, Monkey Nugs! It's almost bedtime!" That made me think... Where did Monkey Nugs come from? Where does any nickname come from? My mom calls me Linda Susan... I know, right? Linda Susan? Not even CLOSE to my name! It doesn't bother me one bit, but where did it come from?

Sometimes I know where the nicknames I use come from, and sometimes I don't. For over 8 years, I've called B, "B." It all stemmed from his work name tag which read, "B. _____." I'm not sure he likes it, but he puts up with is.

Both kids have a whole gamut of nicknames ranging from shortened versions of their real names to things like Buddy and Princess to crazy things like Monkey Nugs. The grandparents have nicknames for them, too, and it doesn't bother us (or the kids) at all. They respond just the same as they would if you called them by their real name.

I know there are people out there who are very particular about their names. You can't shorten them, you can't change them, you can't call them by names other than the name given to them at birth, and that's fine. Then there are the ones who are completely the opposite, the name they go by has absolutely NOTHING to do with their given name. I once met a woman named Star Cloud. (No, that wasn't her birth name.) Her birth name was something very 'common' but she went by Star Cloud. Then there are names like Margaret which is shortened to Peggy and Henry which is shortened to Hank... Not seemingly related names and not shortened version of the originals, yet everyone knows them. Who sat around and decided this? Clearly it was someone with WAY too much time on their hands if they could come back and report that Margaret would become Peggy!

What's YOUR nickname, and where did it come from?