Baseball legend Hank Greenberg (né Henry Benjamin Greenberg), 1 January 1911–4 September 1986
While many English nicknames have an immediately or quickly obvious connection with the full names they’re formed from (e.g., Liz and Betty from Elizabeth, Nick and Cole from Nicholas, Ellie and Nora from Eleanor, Sandy and Alex from Alexander), nicknames with much older roots often come across as totally non-intuitive to the average modern person. Let’s look at some of these nicknames.
Bill from William: Swapping consonants at the start of shortened forms of names was common in the Late Middle Ages. It’s also been suggested this nickname was influenced by how it’s easier for young children to say B than W, and that juvenile mispronunciation sticks.
British–American actor and entertainer Bob Hope (né Leslie Townes Hope), 1903–2003
Bob from Robert: This follows the same pattern of swapping in a different consonant at the start of a nickname, though it appeared later than the Medieval nicknames Hob, Nob, and Dob, and has lasted into the modern era.
Chuck from Charles: This is a more recent coinage, first being documented in 19th century America and only becoming popular in the early 20th century. I’ve seen it suggested that people may have wanted a simple, one-syllable nickname for Charles, and modelled it after nicknames like Jack and Hank.
American actor Dick Powell, 1904–1963
Dick from Richard: This is another nickname formed with a consonant swap, possibly influenced by how Medieval Britons pronounced the occupying Normans’ trilled R. The vulgar slang meaning of this word didn’t originate until the 1880s, and it didn’t become so well-known and popular as to make Dick seem like a socially unacceptable nickname until the late 1960s.
Hank from Henry: Originally, this was a Medieval nickname for John, derived from Hankin. Only in the 17th century Thirteen Colonies did it morph into a nickname for Henry, probably influenced by Henk, the Dutch nickname for Hendrik.
Hungarian–American magician Harry Houdini (né Erik Weisz), 1874–1926
Harry from Henry: For years, I thought this was a nickname for Harold. Though it can be used that way in modern times, it originated from the French Henri, introduced to England by the occupying Normans. The usual Medieval English pronunciation was Harry or Herry.
Jack from John: This derives from the Medieval nickname Jackin, which in turn came from Jankin, Jenkin, and Jenk. Though some sources suggest it may have been influenced by another name introduced by the Normans, Jacques, the names are totally unrelated etymologically. Only in the late 20th century did it become common for boys to be legally named Jack, to the point that many people no longer realise this was only a nickname for centuries.
Native American athlete and Olympic gold medalist Jim Thorpe (né Wa-Tho-Huk, which means Bright Path), of the Sac and Fox Nation, 1887–1953
Jim from James: This was a Medieval diminutive, possibly originating from people pronouncing the shortened form Jam as Jim. Jem and Jemmy were also once nicknames for James, but seem to have gone out of fashion in the 19th century, when Jim became much more popular and common.
Ned/Ted from Edward: Here’s a nickname formed from Late Middle Ages wordplay. Over time, the term of endearment “mine Ed” morphed into Ned.
American comedic actor Shemp Howard (né Samuel Horwitz), 1895–1955
Shemp from Samuel: As a huge Three Stooges fan and someone who plans to give my own future son Samuel the nickname Shemp if I’m blessed with kids before time runs out, I’m obliged to include this one! His mother Jennie’s thick Litvak Yiddish accent rendered Sam as Shemp, and the unique nickname stuck. Who else in history has had that name!
Shemp was one of the original Stooges, back when they were a stage act, and was arguably the best, most versatile actor of all of them, since he had a wide-ranging career outside of being a Stooge. People who bash Shemp just because he wasn’t Curly or had a very different comedic persona from Curly get zero love from me. How can you be a Stooges fan if you hate one of their longest-running members? Just admit you’re a Curly fan instead of a fan of the act as a whole! I also don’t think Curly would be very happy about so-called fans bashing his big brother, who happens to be my next-fave Stooge after Curly.
Onomastics Outside the Box 